


The Grey Guardian

by VarjoRuusu



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Original Trilogy, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Rebels, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Additional Clone Troopers, F/M, Force Bonds, Force Sensative Original Character, Full Story Retelling, Gen, Grey Jedi, I may add tags but don't want to get too bogged down now, Major Canon Divergence post RotS, Mild Canon Divergence up to RotS, Movie: Star Wars: Attack of the Clones, Obi-Wan/Original Female Character Relationship, Original Characters - Freeform, Post-Star Wars: The Clone Wars, Post-Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Pre-Star Wars: The Phantom Menace, Romance, Slow Burn, So Married, Star Wars: Rebels (Mentions), Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) Spoilers, The force is pushy, Unconventional Jedi, Unconventional Jedi Training, long fic, original main character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-01
Updated: 2021-03-05
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:46:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 26,409
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28004880
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VarjoRuusu/pseuds/VarjoRuusu
Summary: For as long as Sarenna Bakashi can remember the force has been with her, a guiding voice whispering in her ear. An orphan from the desert planet of Tatooine, with only the tutelage of a wandering Jedi outcast, Sarenna must fine her own path through the galaxy, even if that means staying behind when Anakin Skywalker, closer to her than any blood brother, is whisked away to begin his own training.Years later, led by the mysteries of the force to the Jedi Temple, Sarenna's unconventional journey will carry her through the years leading up to the Clone Wars, through every battle and skirmish, through the Fall of the Republic, the rise of the rebellion, and beyond.New chapters posted on Friday, with 2 chapters on the 1st Friday of the month!
Relationships: Obi-Wan Kenobi/OFC, Padmé Amidala/Anakin Skywalker
Comments: 28
Kudos: 42





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This. Wow, what do I say about this story. 
> 
> I started this story probably five years ago now. It's been a labour. I can still tell you the single scene that began this, and it was supposed to be a very short, self indulgent "Look, Obi-Wan gets to be happy for a while" type thing. When I passed 100k earlier this year I pretty much had a melt down. (Of shock and joy, don't worry.) This has become the single longest thing I have ever written, and that includes my officially published novel. 
> 
> This story grew into something I couldn't even have began to predict I would ever write, and my sister (who is not as Star Wars obsessed as me, but I've been making watch more things) says it's probably the best and most real, human thing I've ever written. That amazed me, but here we are.
> 
> When I started to expand this, I thought 'maybe I can fix it'. And there are drafts where everything is fixed in RotS, but when I got there...I couldn't. If anything I made it worse. Without really giving too much away, this story hurts. But I think it's a good hurt, it leave you with hope, but it really goes through how events affected people, and all the pain everything caused. It was never meant to go beyond RotS, but it's gone fully through the original trilogy and the epilogue is somewhere around 20 ABY. I covered 70 years. Apparently when I do a long project, I really go for it.
> 
> I've incorporated so many things into this. All the prequel trilogy, the clone wars, the fall of the republic, the time between (Note: This was all written before they aired the Obi-Wan show, this note is being written on the day they actually announced the return of Hayden Christensen so I'm still squealing.) and then the rebellion, Yavin, and Endor. There are Rebels mentions, so so many things, and while not first person (ew) it is written almost entirely from Sarenna's point of view. I've read some of the books, but I've also spent a lot of time on Wookiepedia looking for things, checking stuff. I tried to keep to timelines and include events that might not have been mentioned in shows and movies, but appeared elsewhere. Once I got going I tried to brush on a lot of things, although there are some that aren't there because it just didn't make sense. She can't be everywhere at once.
> 
> So, I think I'll leave it there for now. This story is probably....80-85% complete at the time I'm writing this, but the first 32 chapters are finished and polished and I will be posting one a week, starting the first Friday of 2021.I think it's a good way to ring in the new year. I don't want to take over a year to post, because that seems cruel, so I'll be doing 2 chapters at the start of each month. 
> 
> Any and all comments, kudos, follows, bookmarks, and shares are all appreciated so so much, especially because I know some people can be leery about original characters, and if you've read this, thank you so much for giving it a chance. 
> 
> Much love to everyone, and I hope this gives you a bit of time to get lost outside the real world!
> 
> \- Kat

_ Prologue: _

The suns on Tatooine rise quickly, as the sun does with most desert planets. The days are longer than the average rotation of the central planets, nearly thirty-seven hours, instead of twenty-five. The nights are cold and dark, just as the days are hot and bright, and both will kill you if you aren’t careful.

For six year old Sarenna Bakashi, her days begin well before sunrise, when she slips out of bed and sleepily settles herself in the passenger seat of a speeder with three other children close to her own age. By the time the first sun is rising over the dunes, they’ve already filled several baskets with the only fruit that grows on this desolate outer rim planet, a small purple fruit that likes the shade of the canyons far from any type of civilisation.

The canyons themselves aren't exactly safe, being filled with all manner of beasts and creatures, but no creature has ever bothered Sarenna while she was picking, so some of the more superstitious people think she is a good luck charm. No group of children gathering fruit in the early dawn light has ever been attacked if Sarenna was with them, and despite some people seeing a few of the more vicious creatures watching them with curiosity, none have ever even approached. For this, Sarenna is usually paid double by man she works for, Dak Kato, who himself is as superstitious as they come.

She doesn’t mind being treated like she’s something special, even though she knows she isn’t. She’s happy to pick fruit for him, and she shares the food she buys with the other children in the orphanage, so none go hungry. They all have good clothes, and they’re healthy, because she shares what she has. Dak Kato himself is a good man, and he has a soft spot for children who have lost everything. Along with being a patron of the orphanage, he gives the children work and he pays them in real money, giving at least some of them a chance to earn the possibility of a future away from the slums of Mos Espa.

It was a normal day like any other, unremarkable in every way. The suns had risen, Sarenna had picked fruit with two other boys and returned to town with them like she did every day during the picking season. There was no bright star in the sky, no wind howling on the horizon, nothing to indicate in any way that her life was about to be altered forever, or that she was about to step onto the path that would take her across the galaxy.

* * *

The suns were high in the sky when they retuned to town and Dak Kato set up his stall to sell the purple fruit like he did every day. The boys had run off already, exploring the market and deciding what to buy when they received their pay at the end of the day. Only Sarenna stayed, since she was the only one who could count money and sell fruit besides Kato. She was busy brushing dirt from their morning’s picking, sorting them by size into baskets and boxes, when a shadow fell over and she looked up, startled. The fruit she had been holding fell into her lap with a thud.

“Hello,” the tall man said carefully, kneeling down to her eye level. His face was half obscured by a hood, but she caught a glimpse of long dark hair. “What’s your name?” he asked.

Sarenna studied him for a long moment, listening. Finally, she tilted her head and answered carefully.

“I’m Sarenna,” she said. “Who are you?”

“Would you show me what you were doing just now?” he asked instead of answering and Sarenna’s eyes widened. She bit her lip, then a moment later she sat up straighter and six or seven of the small purple fruit rose from their baskets and floated around them slowly in a perfect circle.

The man smiled, his dark eyes twinkling under his hood. A strip of yellow on his dark skin caught the light. “You are powerful, young one,” he said as he reached a hand out. 

Five more fruit rose and hovered carefully, moving in a complex pattern. The fruit that Sarenna was holding with her power sank back into their baskets slowly as she watched.

“You're a Jedi,” she said quietly and the man nodded, his dark hair sliding forward over his shoulders in long locks that almost reached his chest.

“And from what I see, little one, you could be as well someday,” he smiled, and Sarenna didn’t now what to say.

All children knew the tales of the Jedi. They were like legends among the other orphans, stories told at night to keep the monsters away. Every child in Mos Espa wanted to be whisked away to Coruscant to become a Jedi, but Sarenna was the only one of them who understood the force and what it meant, because the force spoke to her and her alone. Not in words, perhaps, but in feelings, sensations. She understood its existence, and she knew what it was from a very early time in her life. She also knew well enough not to tell anyone what she could hear, or see, or do. She had no memories of her parents, who had died when she was an infant, but the force had always been there to guide her. She was careful most days, to make sure no one saw her practice her talents, but that day with the fruit, she had been careless.

“May I teach you?” the Jedi asked, and after a long moment, Sarenna nodded.

It wasn’t bad, she supposed, months later, having someone to teach her. He gave names to things she knew by instinct but didn’t understand, taught her the history of the Jedi and everything there was to know about the force. He was a strange man, tall and foreboding with an air of darkness around him, though it didn’t come from the force. It wasn’t the dark side, it was just him, his past and his pain, and he never would tell her his name or why he’d come to her planet.

He was kind and patient when he sat with Sarenna and told her stories of the Jedi and the Republic and the force. He taught her languages and more numbers than she could imagine existed. He taught her how to meditate and control the force around her, and as the years passed he even began to teach her the basics of combat and lightsabre training.

In exchange Sarenna taught him about the planet, how to survive in the desert, how to speak the Hutt language, how to bargain without losing all his money. He lived in a small house near the outskirts of town, and most days Sarenna was knocking on his door before the suns rose with a cup of herb tea, excited for the day to begin. Then one day, he was simply gone.

* * *

Nearly four years had passed since he’d spoken to her that first day in the market, the time flying by in the blink of an eye. Sarenna knew the structure of Jedi training and knew she was almost old enough to be called an apprentice, rather than a child, and she had thought perhaps they would leave together one day. Instead she found his house the same as it had always been, his belongings left behind and a stack of data pads on the table. The only thing missing was him.

Sarenna searched the small house three times, looking for anything that might give her a clue where he went, but there was nothing, only a rough piece of paper giving her ownership of his house and everything in it, signed by the local magistrate. Weeks passed, and no one saw or heard from him. No one saw him leave, there were no starships missing from the yard, even in Mos Eisley nothing out of the ordinary had happened. He was gone as if he’d never been there at all, save the items he left behind. 

After a few weeks, Sarenna gave up on him ever coming back. She returned to her fruit picking, her days no longer filled with Jedi lessons, and she remained living in the orphanage with her friends. She wasn’t ready to live in a house alone, even if there had been no dispute that she, a nine year old girl, was the rightful owner of it now.

A scant number of weeks after Sarenna had come to the decision to put him out of her mind and carry on with her life, she was woken late in the night by the force screaming all around her. There was no other word for it, but a scream, and no matter what Sarenna did, she couldn’t block it out or keep the sound at bay. It was as if the force was being torn in two, crying out in joy and terror at the same time, and she couldn’t understand what was wrong, what was happening. She only knew that something was happening, something that could very well change the fate of the galaxy, once enough years had passed.

Finally, after hours of trying to hold her ears against the noise that was only in her mind, she put her things in her bag, took her blanket, and ran into the night. Her footsteps carried her to the house the Jedi had left behind and she sighed, pushing the door open with one small hand. The place was dark, bathed in shadows from the moon, but more importantly, it was silent. Whatever was causing the disturbance in the force didn’t reach here, or at least it was dim enough that Sarenna could block it out. Taking her blanket she curled up on the floor in front of the window and waited, listened, until the force swelled then settled, humming gently all around her now. After that night, she never returned to the orphanage again.


	2. Chapter 2

Part I  


* * *

_Nine Years Later _   
_ (32 BBY) _

Sarenna watched through the scope of her rifle as the shiny silver ship landed in the middle of the dunes.

That morning the force had woken her, humming, pulling her into the desert. She had spotted the ship just after midday, coming in low across the sand. It was obvious it had been in a firefight, there were laser burns along the hull and one engine was still smoking gently. She didn't recognise the markings, but it obviously belonged to someone important, likely from one of the central planets. You didn’t get many ships that clean out here in the outer rim, and what they were doing here was anyones guess.

She settled a little deeper in the sand, pulling her force shields tight around her as she watched the ramp lower and a man in a sand coloured poncho emerged, a blue and white astro droid rolling behind him and some type of amphibious creature trailing at the end. They crossed the sand, headed for Mos Espa, when two more figures emerged from the ship, a man in a uniform and a young woman. There was a brief exchange, then the group started walking again, this time accompanied by the woman.

The droid and the amphibian weren’t worth her time, droids had never been of much interest and the amphibian would either adapt or die. Deserts weren’t the best places for a creature that came from a water world. The woman was sensitive, Sarenna could tell that much, but she was untrained, undisciplined, and her emotions swirled around her like a beacon. Her baring said she was someone important, likely royalty from one of the planets with monarchical rule. Young too, younger than Sarenna. But she wasn’t important now. The man was who was important, because he was a Jedi.

His presence was quiet, in the force, but distinctive. She hadn’t felt a presence like this since her rogue Jedi had vanished, nearly ten years ago, when he ran from whatever he’d been hiding from, leaving her behind. That had been just before Anakin was born, the night when the force nearly tore itself in half.

This man, unless Sarenna was very much mistaken, was a Jedi Master, and she could feel another presence on the ship. That presence was less somehow, younger perhaps. Not a master, maybe a knight or a young learner. Either way, two Jedi on Tatooine was not something that happened every day, and the from the looks of things, they were trying to keep a low profile.

She ducked out of sight when the man paused, glancing across the desert and toward the dune she was resting on. She checked and made sure her force signature was completely hidden before she stowed her rifle and turned her speeder back toward town, adjusting her sand goggles before kicked the old machine until it started.

It was nearly mid afternoon when she got back to her small home and tucked the speeder away, but she had easily beaten the group of travellers back. Leaving her rifle, she made sure she had her knives with her, and even a blaster as she wrapped a dark grey desert cloak around her and went out to the edge of town to wait. Something was coming, trouble following on the heels of the small party, and she wanted to be ready.

She sat in the shade of a doorway in a derelict home that had been abandoned years before, and she waited. The suns moved across the sky until the small party emerged from the desert and headed into town. She caught a few words of their conversation, power failure, damaged systems. They were looking for a parts dealer. There were dozens of parts and junk dealers in Mos Espa, but they walked straight toward Watto’s shop as if there was a string drawing them in.

The Jedi glanced around every few minutes but Sarenna was sure it was just natural caution, not that he had spotted her following him. He probably hadn’t spotted the other three pickpockets that had been following them either, but they had seen Sarenna and backed off when they recognised her. All of Mos Espa knew better than to mess with one of her targets. She watched them enter the shop, and she settled down to wait across the street.

When they emerged again, Sarenna followed. She suspected Watto had what they needed, he had more junk than half the dealers in the city put together, but he charged a high price. The travellers likely had Republic credits, a currency that wasn’t much used out in the outer rim. The way they moved indicated that they had been unsuccessful in acquiring what they needed.

She followed them through town, watching and listening. The amphibious creature wasn’t very intelligent, she could tell that from how he spoke, and how he tried to take food without paying for it. She watched the frog go flying and land in Sebulba’s soup and she nearly smirked. That was the end of whatever this creature was. Then Anakin appeared and Sarenna rolled her eyes at the boy. Always interfering.

“Your buddy was about to be turned into orange goo,” Anakin was saying as she closed the distance to small group, lowering her hood.

“Thank you,” the Jedi nodded.

“What are you?” Anakin asked, examining the tall orange creature.

“Meesa a Gungan!” it said proudly. “Meesa called Jar-Jar Binks.”

“Nice to meet you,” Anakin grinned. “What are you doing here anyway? You’re not from around here, and you’re not the kind of people that usually come through the spaceport,” the boy said, glancing between them. “How did your ship get damaged?”

“Anakin, that’s enough,” Sarenna said quietly, laying a hand on the boy’s shoulder.

“Hey, Renna,” he said with a smile as he looked up at her. She returned his smile tightly, then nodded to the others. “This is Sarenna, she’s my friend,” he introduced her to them. “Renna, this is Padmé, Jar-Jar, and…”

“Qui-Gon Jinn,” the Jedi introduced himself. “Pleased to meet you.”

“And you,” Sarenna said, dropping her hand from Anakin’s shoulder as they walked on down the street, and he looked at her funny for a moment, as if he hadn’t heard her coming just now, but with how tamped down her force presence was, he wouldn’t have. She could still feel his end of their connection as he changed the subject to the desert fruit in the next stall along, and she felt the moment he saw the lightsabre on the Jedi’s belt, and he glanced at her, understanding bright in his eyes.

Anakin knew the entire story of the Jedi, she’d raised him on it. She’d told him tales of the man who had come and taught her, and she had taught him those lessons and more besides, from the data pads the Jedi had left behind. Anakin was strong with the force, even so young, but he was wild like fire. Being a slave had never sat well with him, and it had never sat well with Sarenna that she couldn’t afford to free him and his mother. The best she had been able to do was pay someone off to make sure they’d been sold away from Gardulla, to someone who was at least not vicious, though Watto was no desert flower.

“My bones are aching, Ani, storm’s coming,” the old stall keeper said and turned her face to the wind, feeling the sand already blowing in.

“We should return to our ship,” Qui-Gon said.

“Is it far?” Anakin asked, though Sarenna already knew the answer. They’d be swallowed by the sand if they tried it.

“It’s on the outskirts,” the girl, Padmé, said.

“You’ll never make it,” Anakin cried. “Come on, you can stay at my place.”

“Anakin,” Sarenna warned but he just glared at her.

“It’s the closest. Your house is on the other side of town, and mom won’t mind. Come on,” he said and she sighed, shaking her head and following the boy and their new companions to his house, through the driving sand. This storm had come up quickly, even for Tatooine.

“Mom! I brought new friends!” Anakin called as they entered the small house a few minutes later.

Sarenna stepped to the side, laying her cloak over the bench and going to stand by Shmi as she came from the tiny kitchen.

“A storm’s blown in,” she explained. “And Anakin is Anakin.”

“I’m very please to meet you,” the Jedi said politely as he bowed to Shmi. “My name is Qui-Gon Jinn. Our ship was damaged and we were looking for parts at the shop where your son works. He was kind enough to offer us shelter when the storm began.”

“Come see my droid,” Anakin said, taking Padmé’s hand and pulling her toward the back of the house.

“He’s always building things,” Shmi said with a smile and Sarenna chuckled.

“Taking them apart, too,” she said, crossing her arms.

A moment later the Jedi’s communicator beeped.

“Excuse me,” he said politely, moving away and accepting the call.

“Are you alright?” Shmi asked, laying a hand on Sarenna’s arm.

“Something’s happening,” Sarenna said quietly. “The balance is shifting.”

“Hmm. Well, the meal will be ready soon. There will be nothing for any of us to do until this storm has passed.”

Sarenna nodded, untying a bag of fruits and vegetables she’d collected from the stall earlier and handed them to Shmi, who smiled and went back to the kitchen. Sarenna turned to hear the tail end of Qui-Gon’s conversation.

“Either way, we’re running out of time,” he was saying. He turned off the communicator and came to join them, all while keeping and eye on the wandering Jar-Jar, lest he upset anything.

“Are you sure there’s enough? I don’t want to impose on you,” Qui-Gon said quietly, gently touching Shmi’s elbow.

“Of course,” Shmi said with a smile. “We don’t often have visitors, it’s no trouble.”

“They won’t go hungry, if that’s what you’re worried about,” Sarenna said from across the small space, arms crossed as she watched Qui-Gon. “They may be slaves, but they’re allowed to keep money and buy their own food.”

“Sarenna,” Shmi said quietly.

“Slavery is a hard thing, no matter the circumstances,” Qui-Gon said quietly.

“Yeah, if you run away they blow you up,” Anakin said, ducking around Sarenna and getting the plates and bowls and laying them out on the table.

“How can slavery still exist out here?” Padmé asked, aghast as she took a bowl of fruit from Shmi and put it on the table. “The Republic-“

“The Republic doesn’t exist in the outer rim,” Shmi said as she gestured for them to sit. “Out here, we survive by our wits, and the generosity of others,” she smiled at Sarenna, who nodded, taking her seat.

“Has anyone ever seen a pod race?” Anakin asked, changing the subject. Padmé shook her head but Qui-Gon nodded.

“Once, on Malastare. Very fast, very dangerous.”

“I’m the only human who can do it,” Anakin grinned.

“Anakin,” Sarenna warned as Qui-Gon’s eyebrows rose.

“You must have Jedi reflexes, if you race pods,” he said, voice curious.

Jar-Jar’s tongue shot out to the fruit bowl and Qui-Gon demonstrated his own reflexes by grabbing the gungan’s tongue and admonishing him.

“You’re a Jedi Knight, aren’t you?” Anakin asked, not so much with curiosity, but as if he already knew the answer.

“What makes you say that?”

“I saw your laser sword. Only Jedi carry those.”

“Perhaps I killed a Jedi, and took it from him,” Qui-Gon said.

“I don’t think so. No one can kill a Jedi,” Anakin insisted.

“I only wish that were true.” There was a melancholy behind his words and Sarenna wondered who he’d lost.

“I had a dream I was a Jedi,” Anakin said, glancing at Sarenna. He knew he wasn’t supposed to talk about their abilities with the force, but this was a Jedi, this had to be different. Sarenna took a breath, then nodded slightly, giving him permission to speak his mind. “I came back here,” Anakin went on. “I freed all the slaves, and made everything better. Have you come to free us?”

“I’m afraid not,” Qui-Gon said sadly. “We simply needed a safe place to land while we made repairs.

“I think you have,” Anakin said, and privately Sarenna agreed that there was something more to their visit. “Why else would you be here?”

“We’re on our way to Coruscant,” Qui-Gon said, glancing at the others. “On a very important mission.”

“I can help fix your ship,” Anakin said brightly.

“We need the parts first,” Qui-Gon reminded him.

“And nothing to trade,” Jar-Jar shrugged.

“These junk dealers must have a weakness for something,” Padmé said.

“Gambling,” Shmi shook her head. “Everything here revolves around betting on pod races.

“I’ve built one,” Anakin grinned. “It’s the fastest ever, and I’ve almost finished it! I could have it ready for the Boonta Eve tomorrow, I know I could.”

“Anakin,” Shmi said gently. “You know I hate it when you race, and Watto won’t let you do it again.”

“He doesn’t know I’ve built the pod,” Anakin protested, his voice devolving into a begging whine. He turned to Qui-Gon. “You can pretend it’s yours and get him to let me fly it. You can make a bet with him for the parts you need.”

“It sounds dangerous,” Padmé said quietly. “I’m sure none of us want to put you in danger.”

“Mom, nobody helps each other,” Anakin said quietly. “The only person that’s ever helped us is Sarenna, and look how much better our lives have been for it. You know I just want to help.”

Shmi spared a smile for Sarenna who nodded to Anakin fondly, knowing he almost had his mother convinced. She wasn’t happy about this herself, but there was nothing she could do. There was no sense of danger in the force, so this must be what was meant to happen.

“Well,” Shmi said quietly. “It’s not like I can stop you, not when you set your mind to something.” She reached out and ruffled Anakin’s hair and he grinned, shying away from her hand.

“You’re going to have to work hard to get the pod ready,” Sarenna told Anakin and he nodded happily, digging into his dinner as the topic moved on.

“I’ll go make the wager as soon as the storm is over,” Qui-Gon said.

“Yippee!” Anakin cheered and they all smiled at his boyish enthusiasm.


	3. Chapter 3

“Anakin, watch that connector,” Sarenna said, just before Anakin sparked himself on the loose connection. 

“Ow,” he muttered, poking at the connection and setting it back into place. “Thanks,” he said dryly.

“Remember, Anakin, keep your mind clear,” Sarenna told him quietly, glancing up where Shmi and Qui-Gon were talking at the top of the house. They’d gone to work on the pod as soon as Qui-Gon and Anakin had returned from Watto’s shop. “Remember what I’ve taught you.”

“Do you think I could have been a Jedi?” he asked in a far off voice. “If I hadn’t been born a slave?”

“Hmm,” Sarenna said, reaching over and running a hand over his hair. “There may be a chance you’ll be a Jedi yet. What do you feel?”

Anakin thought for a moment, looking for words. “It feels like…I can’t describe it. Like those whirlpools we’ve read about.”

“The force is shifting,” Sarenna nodded. “Remember,”

“Mind clear,” Anakin finished with a laugh. “I’ll try, Renna, promise.”

“Hmm,” Sarenna hummed as some of Anakin’s friends appeared from around the corner and she turned to the tool box to look for the metal cleaning solution. If this pod ran the way Anakin said it would, it was going to need a new coat of paint.

“Here,” Qui-Gon said a few minutes later as he came through the archway. “Use this power charge, let’s see what you’ve built.”

“Yeehoo,” Anakin said happily, stepping into the pod and slotting the charge into place. He flipped some switches, then the pod roared to life on the first try and he shouted triumphantly over the noise of the engines as Sarenna’s heart swelled with pride. 

The rest of the day passed with tinkering, cleaning, and painting, the extended hours of light giving them plenty of time to get the work they needed to done. Inside, Shmi cleared out space for all of them to sleep, which they accepted gratefully. Padmé was asleep almost as soon as she lay down on the floor, a blanket pulled around her, and Jar-Jar was sound asleep in one of the chairs, snorting with his head tilted back and his mouth open. 

“Bed time, Anakin,” Shmi called out to the terrace and a moment later Anakin ran inside. Sarenna moved to the open door, not quite spying on Qui-Gon, but she did hear most of his discussion with his apprentice back on the ship. She knew Qui-Gon sensed her presence, so she simply waited for him to speak.

“He’s strong with the force,” Qui-Gon said a moment later, quietly looking out at the stars. “Who is he, to you?”

“He’s like my brother,” Sarenna said quietly, emerging from the shadows, shawl wrapped tight around her to protect from the chill of night in the desert. “Will you take him to Coruscant? Will you train him?” 

Qui-Gon watched her for a long moment, startled, but not showing it. There was clearly more to this young woman than met the eye.

“It is unlikely the Jedi Council would allow him to be trained. We do not accept younglings after they are five, normally. There is too much they learn as young children that they never quite catch up on,” he said quietly.

“And if he's had some of that training? Maybe not in the Jedi way, but if he knows the lessons learned at that age...what then?” she asked.

Now Qui-Gon was confused and it flitted across his face briefly.

“Who are you?” he asked and Sarenna closed her eyes, slowly letting go of the dampening she'd held around her force signature for the last several hours, until her presence shone clear as day, and Qui-Gon nearly held up a hand to shield his eyes, though it would do no good.

“You've been trained,” he said after a long minute, his voice a little awed.

“Almost fourteen years ago a Jedi came here, on the run. I never knew from who, or from what, but he found me in the market floating fruits. I lived in the orphanage nearby, my parents died when I was a baby, but he trained me every day. He taught me the history of the Jedi, and the codes, Jedi, Sith, Grey. He wanted me to know everything, to understand what the Jedi were, what the Sith were, what the force was. Four years later, he vanished. He left behind everything except his sabre, including a whole basket full of data pads filled with Jedi knowledge. I never stopped reading those histories, those training manuals,” Sarenna told him, leaning against the wall just outside the light of the door. “I'm no Jedi, but many things are clear to me that are not clear to others.”

“And Anakin?”

Sarenna thought for a moment how to explain. 

“The night he was born, the force screamed. Almost as if it were in pain, yet rejoicing at the same time. I looked for him, after that, and I found him a few months later. We became friends as he grew into a child and I tried to teach him the same things the Jedi taught me, when I was his age. I tried to teach him more than I had been given, things I learned from the texts. He's not perfect, but there are things he understands that normal children do not.”

“And what of you? Would you come with us?” Qui-Gon inquired curiously. This girl would be a great asset to the Temple, in whatever role they chose to give her. Her force signature was almost as strong as little Anakin's, and he could sense she was already a formidable warrior, and smart too.

“No,” Sarenna sighed, turning away and gazing at the stars. “Maybe someday, but even if you found a way to free him, and take him with you, I still have business here. I won't leave until it's done.”

“I understand,” Qui-Gon nodded. “I thank you for your trust,” he bowed his head and Sarenna nodded, her force signature dimming once more as she looked him over one last time, then went inside, saying goodnight to Shmi before she went home.

In the dark, somewhere out in the desert, the force shivered at the appearance of a dark presence, unlike anything Sarenna had ever felt. Something wicked had just landed on Tatooine.

* * *

Mos Espa was bustling with activity the next morning as everyone was getting ready for the race. Mech droids rushed back and forth, replacing parts last minute. Jawas were hawking bits of machinery, broken machinery most likely, and everywhere bets on the winner were being placed. Anakin and the others were on their way with the pod, but inside the hanger where the main race preparations were taking place, Qui-Gon was speaking to Watto. She squinted as Watto pulled a cube from his pouch and threw it, and she felt the force jump from Qui-Gon to the die, twisting it so the blue side landed up. Watto flapped off in a huff as Sarenna crossed the hanger.

“What have you done?” she asked, stepping up to Qui-Gon a moment later.

“If Anakin wins, he’s to be freed,” the Jedi said calmly.

“And you said you weren’t here to free slaves.”

“Anakin is special, I believe there may be a future for him away from here.”

“Would you train him?” Sarenna asked. Qui-Gon looked out the hanger, where Anakin and his mother were approaching with Padmé and Anakin’s friend Kitster. 

“That will have to be a decision for the council,” he said quietly and Sarenna huffed, moving away to take the pod from the droids, and fetch Anakin, who was having a disagreement with a Jawa.

“I’m not buying your junk,” Anakin grumbled, trying to shoo the Jawa away. It wasn’t easy, considering it was almost as big as he was, one of the larger ones. It squeaked at him irritatedly. 

“I told you, I don’t need it, now get lost,” Anakin said, voice raising. The Jawa squealed again, obviously angry now.

“Alright, break it up,” Sarenna said, stepping between them as Anakin lunged. “He told you to get lost, now beat it,” she told the Jawa and it threw a few curses at her before it ambled off, not ready to contend with someone almost two feet taller.

“Sleemos,” Anakin muttered and Sarenna chuckled. 

“They’re better than sand people,” she pointed out.

“Barely,” Anakin grumbled. He’d always had a deep loathing for sand people, one Sarenna had never quite understood. She'd met a few in the desert and they've been wary, but never bothered her.

“Be careful out there, you understand?” Sarenna said quietly and Anakin nodded, pausing his work to come and hug her tightly around the middle. 

“I will, I promise,” he grinned. “This is going to be so wizard!”

“Go on,” she chuckled, ruffling his hair. “Go win.”

Her smile dropped when his back was turned and she walked away slowly, breathing deeply as her worry and apprehension rose. She had read the line up of racers, too many names that raced dirty, too many who had killed other racers more than once just for a chance to win.

“He could be killed,” she said quietly as she joined the others, reaching for the force, looking for any hint of the outcome of this madness.

“He’ll be fine,” Qui-Gon said as they all moved toward the circular observation platform, far enough back that they were out of hearing of Anakin’s mother.

“You do know almost everyone on that field is going to cheat, don’t you?” she said.

“You must trust in the force, Sarenna,” Qui-Gon said. “It has brought us all here for a reason, it will protect him.”

“I never thought the Jedi were this reckless,” Padmé hissed on Qui-Gon’s other side. “The Queen-“

“The Queen trusts my judgement, young handmaiden,” Qui-Gon said, dismissing the girl’s worries. 

Sarenna smirked, wondering if Qui-Gon had figured out yet that this was the Queen they were hiding away, and not just a simple handmaiden. She suspected he hadn’t. The girl hid it well, but she was too outspoken to be a handmaiden.

The race began a few minutes later to a rush of cheers, and, immediately, Anakin’s pod stalled. It took a few moments until he got the pod working, then he was off, speeding away after the competition. He raced through the canyons and shot out of the caves, when suddenly blaster fire rang out across the desert, carried to the arena by the microphones placed along the racecourse.

“What was that?” Padmé asked and Sarenna frowned. 

“Sand people. They’re local, they use the races for target practice. Few people will deal with them, they’re vicious, nasty things,” she explained. “They don’t mix well with others. Very territorial.”

“He’s catching up,” Qui-Gon said, nodding at the screen in Shmi’s hands.

He was, until one of the engines disconnected and was flying free from the pod. Sarenna held her breath as Anakin managed to reconnect the fuel hose and continue to move up the contenders until he was barely behind Sebulba. A shot nicked Anakin’s pod as they came out of the caves a second time and another pod was destroyed. They sped through the arena and into the final lap, and only moments later Anakin was out in front, leaving Sebulba in his dust. Another moment and his left engine caught fire, leaving him scrambling for the third time. Once more, his quick thinking fixed the problem and then he was back on Sebulba’s tail, fighting for first place as they came up to the flats outside the arena. The pods hooked together, before ripping apart, and Sebulba went flying, his engine disconnected as the rest of his pod skidded to a stop in the middle of the desert, leaving Anakin as the only racer to finish, and win.

“He did it!” Padmé shouted with joy and Sarenna smiled, shaking her head as the platform descended and Padmé, Shmi, and Jar-Jar all ran for the boy.

“He’s free then,” Sarenna said quietly, as the others went out of earshot. “Will you take him with you?”

“It is still his choice,” Qui-Gon said, and Sarenna nodded. 

“I have to collect my winnings,” she said, turning and vanishing into the crowd.

“Sarenna!” a voice called almost at once and Sarenna turned. 

“Dak, what are you doing here?” she smiled at her old employer. “You don’t normally bet on these things.”

“I saw that little brother of yours was racing, I thought I’d put a small wager in,” Dak winked. 

“Good thinking,” Sarenna smirked. “I’m on my way to collect my own winnings.”

“You’ve done well for yourself, little one,” Dak said, slapping a hand on her shoulder. “I’m proud.”

“Thank you, Dak,” she smiled, waving as he wandered off into the crowd. 

Shuddering, Sarenna glanced around. Something was amiss. The presence she had felt the night before hadn’t moved any closer, but she could still feel the malevolence, quietly waiting out in the desert. She made quick work of collecting the winnings of various bets she’d placed. Some money, some credits, some favours, all stashed away for one purpose. Now that Anakin had been freed by Qui-Gon, it wouldn’t be nearly as long before she could buy Shmi’s freedom from Watto.

When she went to Anakin’s house later, Shmi was gazing sadly out the window and Sarenna knew Anakin had already left. She could still sense his presence nearby, so she took a shortcut and was waiting for them on the outskirts, near her own house, when they turned the corner. She smiled when Anakin saw her and broke into a run, throwing his arms around her neck as she crouched down and hugged him close.

“I’m free,” he whispered to her, still awestruck. “But…mom isn’t,” he said sadly as he stepped back.

“I know,” Sarenna said, brushing dirt off his cheek. “But you have your chance. You can become a Jedi.”

“I’m going to miss her so much,” he said. “You’re not coming either, are you?”

“I can’t,” Sarenna shook her head, smiling sadly.

“Why not?”

“I have things I have to do here,” Sarenna told him gently, kneeling down all the way so their eyes were level. “You’ll see me again, Anakin, don’t worry.”

“I’ll miss you,” he sniffed and Sarenna drew him into a hug, running her fingers through his hair and holding him close. She’d known the day might come when they had to say goodbye, but it didn’t mean she was ready to let him go. 

“Just remember, listen to the force. Trust in it and you will be just fine,” she told him and he nodded, wiping his eyes as he hiked his pack up on his shoulder.

“Take care of mom for me, will ya?” he grinned and Sarenna smiled with him.

“Of course, Ani, you know I will,” she assured him and he nodded, standing a bit straighter and looking back at his house with a fierce determination.

“I’m going to be a Jedi,” he said quietly and Sarenna’s heart swelled with pride. She stood, gripping his shoulder tightly for a moment, then nodding to Qui-Gon as Anakin joined him and they walked away, out into the desert and their waiting ship.

Sarenna waited a few minutes, then she went inside and retrieved her rifle and took her speeder out to the dune where she had first seen the ship land, sensing something was wrong, and wanting to make sure they got away safely. Not long after she was settled on the same dune where she had watched the ship land, her scope trained on the ship as she watched a few people milling around and loading the last of the supplies. She spotted the other Jedi in the window, his hair cut close and a padawan braid hanging over one shoulder, his force signature humming with nervous energy. Not long after, Qui-Gon and Anakin appeared on the horizon, then something dark appeared after them, both dark against the sand and dark in the force.

She could do nothing but watch from the top of the dune as the mysterious warrior caught up to them and vaulted over Qui-Gon, a red sabre igniting in his hand. She wanted to help, but there was nothing she could do as Anakin ran onto the ship and the engines began to power up as the ship shuddered and rose from the ground. She had her rifle trained on the Sith, for what else could it be, and she watched as Qui-Gon parried the red blade before he leapt thirty feet in the air and onto the gangplank of the ship. Sarenna shielded her eyes from the suns as the ship rocketed into the atmosphere, before turning back to the warrior below her. He too was watching the ship, then he turned. By the time his eyes reached where Sarenna had been standing, she was halfway down the dune, her shields locked tight around her as she reached her speeder and headed back for town, still shaking.


	4. Chapter 4

_Tatooine_   
_(29 BBY)_

Three years had passed since the Jedi took Anakin away, and at last, Sarenna was ready to leave for good. Over the years she’d finally saved and stolen enough money to buy Shmi’s freedom and settle her in Sarenna’s own house on the outskirts of Mos Espa. Everything was done at last.

“Are you sure?” Shmi asked as Sarenna tucked the last of her things into her pack and pulled her desert poncho over her shoulders. “The galaxy is a dangerous place.”

Sarenna laughed softly. “This planet is a dangerous place,” she smiled. “But it’s time, I can hear it in the force. Everything here is settled. You’re free, safe. Anakin is safe with the Jedi. It’s time I went.”

“Be careful,” Shmi said softly, pulling Sarenna close. “You’re as dear to me as a daughter.”

“I will. Take care of yourself,” Sarenna whispered.

They exchanged smiles and a nod as Sarenna pulled her hood up and left her small house, squinting in the bright light. With one last glance around her home, she went to the docks and took a transport across the desert to Mos Eisley. Within a day she had passage off world on an old cargo freighter, captained by the father of an old friend. Luck had been with her that they were in port, and it was good to see them both again.

Her friend, Darren, had been at the orphanage with her when she was young, and he’d been adopted when he was around seven by a pilot named Brae. He’d wanted to adopt Sarenna at the time, but she’d refused, wanting to stay behind and secretly train with her Jedi. They had stayed in contact over the years, and Brae had been happy to take her along with them, staunchly refusing her money when she tried to pay for passage.

She stayed with them for a few months as they made their way along their route, until they were as close to the core as they were going to get, a port on the planet Kattada. She left them there, quietly accepting the bag of credits Darren handed her when Brae wasn’t looking.

“This should get you to Coruscant,” he whispered with a wink, and Sarenna hugged him tightly.

“You two take care,” she told him, waving as their ship departed, heading back the way they’d come. Another few months they’d be back on Tatooine, and Darren had promised to look in on Shmi when they got home.

Sighing, she looked around, taking in the world around her and absently rubbing at her ears. She wandered toward the market, buying some bright beads for the dozens of braids she kept her hair in, and a new pair of dark green leather leggings. A while later the ringing was still there and she glanced around, finding a quiet alcove to slip into and take a breath, opening herself up to the force. There, someone was calling out, reaching for help, and she was the only one who heard it. There wasn’t another force sensitive in the entire spaceport.

She broke into a run, following the sound as her dusty grey poncho flew behind her, the feeling, the ringing growing louder with every turn, until she came out of an alley into a yard, surrounded on all sides by high walls. At the other end there was a standard door next to a large warehouse cargo door. She slowed, approaching the door and put her hand against it, flicking her wrist light on as she pushed carefully. She sensed no threat, but she had learned to be cautious anyway. 

The sight that greeted her made her stomach turn. 

Inside was dark, and there was a trail of dark blood, nearly black, crossing the floor to a pile of crates where a form was slumped, motionless. She approached and saw it was a Kel Dor, a species from Dorin, his breathing mask rattling with every breath be took. One side of his goggles was cracked and there was a long cut across his forehead. The worst of it was the stomach wound. Even if he’d had medical attention hours ago, he wasn’t going to survive. She lifted the light a little higher and her heart nearly stopped in shock as the sight of his dress, and the weapon lying next to him. He was a Jedi.

"Come here, young one," his voice rasped through his mask, startling her. She pointed her light toward the floor and stepped over the threshold to kneel at his side. "You have been trained," he continued, his voice weak. "Else you would not have heard my call."

"Only a little, Master Jedi," she told him, hovering a hand over his wounds, feeling the force flowing around them. “A Jedi came to my home planet when I was a child, for a few years. He taught me some.”

“It was enough,” the Kel Dor coughed. “Enough that you could hear my plea for help. Would you,” he paused, taking a breath. “Do me a service, young one?”

“Of course, Master, if I can,” Sarenna nodded at once. She had been drawn here for a reason, guided by the force, she would try to do whatever he asked of her.

“I would have you take this data chip to Coruscant, and put it in the hands of Master Yoda. None other, do you understand?” he said, handing her a small disc. “Take my lightsabre, it will draw any suspicion from you. Few question those who wield a sabre. You must leave me here.”

“No, I won’t leave you, you should be taken home,” Sarenna shook her head.

"You must, child. You must get this information to Yoda as soon as you can. It is vital to the Republic,” he insisted.

Sarenna nodded, her hand wrapped around the Jedi's as he breathed his last. She felt his life leaving his body and mingling with the force around her. She smiled for a moment at the peace he found there, then she bowed her head and took a moment to be still. Then, with a deep breath, she looked down at the drive in her hand.

It was a small, flat disc, easily hidden inside her wrist cuff, not someplace most would think to look. She wondered briefly what as on it as she tucked it away. She carefully took the lightsabre and hooked it onto her belt, before glancing around the room, looking for anything else of use. There was a pile of cloth a little ways away, and she picked it up, finding the Jedi's robe, miraculously undamaged. She left her poncho on the ground and threw the cloak over her shoulders, raising the hood. She made sure the warehouse was sealed before she made her way back to the docks and bought a cryo tube with some of the credits Darren had given her. She also booked passage on a ship to the core.

Once it was dark, she went back to the warehouse with the cryo tube and carefully lifted the Jedi inside, arranging his clothes neatly and using her poncho to cover him like a blanket, hiding the wound and the blood. She initiated the cryo sequence, and then she headed for the ship. She loaded her cargo, and no one even asked any questions. She had been ready to explain that the Jedi was her Master and that his breathing mask had been damaged without either of them realising and he had died in his sleep, but she never had to say a word, and she settled into a seat near a window and watched the stars fly by, her mind both unsettled and serenely calm.

It was only a few hours before they were landing on Coruscant, and she requested a shuttle to the Jedi Temple. Within an hour, one arrived to take her and the Jedi there. She boarded silently, taking a deep breath to hold herself steady as she watched the planet city fly by. Beneath the hood she was able to hide her breathless amazement, sights she had never even imagined moving past her so quickly she could barely see them. Coruscant was like nothing she had seen in all her twenty-two years.

In what seemed like only moments the shuttle was docking at the Jedi Temple and she was met with two masked guards who approached as she came forward, the cryo tube coffin floating at her side.

“I’ve come to return him to his home,” she told them, stepping back as one of the guards stepped up to examine the Jedi inside. “And I bring a message for Master Yoda, for his eyes alone.”

The other guard nodded and stepped back, speaking quietly into a small communicator while the first bowed his head.

“May you rest well, Master Baravi,” he said quietly, laying a hand on the cloudy glass. A moment later the doors opened and a dark skinned man emerged, descending the stairs to them.

“I'm Jedi Master Mace Windu,” he said when he reached her. “What is your business with the Jedi?”

“I heard his call through the force,” she said quietly, indicating the cylinder beside her. “It led me to him, and he asked me to deliver important information to Master Yoda. He asked that I leave his body where I found him, but I couldn't do that. I knew you would have wanted him returned to the order for a proper burial.”

Master Windu watched her silently for a long moment, looking her up and down and taking in her appearance, from her dark leggings and darker tank top, utility belt, blaster, and heavy coating of dust, to the Jedi robe she now wore, and the lightsabre at her hip.

“You are not a Jedi,” he said after a long time. “But you have an understanding of the force that not many do, even here. Master Baravi must have sensed it, even as he was dying. That is why he called to you.”

“I was given some training, when I was young,” she said quietly. “An outcast Jedi came to my home planet and found me. He taught me for a few years, then he vanished.”

“I see. Come then, I will take you to Master Yoda,” Master Windu nodded and Sarenna followed him inside the temple, the calm and peace of the building washing over her like the waves of an ocean she had only ever read about.

After what seemed like an hour of walking through hallways and up stairs and elevators, they reached a large room with chairs set around the edge a circle and wide windows that showed a view of all Coruscant. Master Windu bowed to someone in one of the chairs, then stepped aside.

Master Yoda was not what she expected. 

He was green, for one, and tiny. And he looked at her with such shrewd knowing that she thought he must see every secret of her life. She swallowed and bowed deeply. Master Windu relayed what she had told him, and aside from sparing a moment of sadness for Master Baravi, Master Yoda looked positively delighted to have her standing before him.

“A connection, I sense, to someone in this temple,” he said, and Sarenna blinked.

“I...knew a boy, who came here to be trained,” she said after a moment, fishing out the disk she'd been given and setting it on a small table in the middle of the room. Yoda glanced at it, but made no move toward it.

“Friend of young Skywalker, you are?” Yoda asked and Sarenna didn't even consider asking how he knew.

“Yes, Master,” she said, bowing her head. “I knew Anakin on Tatooine, our home world. He is like a brother to me. May I inquire after him, and Master Qui-Gon?”

“Sad tidings I have for you,” Yoda shook his head. “Dead, Master Qui-Gon is. Killed almost three years ago he was, by a Sith lord. His former apprentice, Obi-Wan Kenobi, Anakin's master is now,” the small Jedi told her. 

Sarenna felt her heart wrench at hearing Qui-Gon was dead and she closed her eyes for a moment, letting her goodbye flow into the force. He had been a good man, and she had always looked forward to speaking to him again.

“See young Skywalker, you wish?” Yoda asked but Sarenna shook her head. 

“I think it would be better if he didn't know I was here,” she smiled, a little sadly. She did want to see him again, but she knew what he was like. “He should not be distracted from his studies.”

“Hmm,” Yoda nodded, still watching her. “That sabre you have,” he said now, changing the subject.

Sarenna pulled the sabre from the hook her belt and held it out to the Master, floating it across the room to him with the force. He raised an eyebrow as he smiled. “Keep it, you will,” he said. “Meant for you now, it is.”

Sarenna caught Master Windu’s eyebrows raising in surprise, but he didn’t say anything.

“But...I'm not a Jedi,” she said quietly and Yoda shrugged.

“Mysterious, is the force. Came to you, the sabre did. Stay with you, it will,” he said and she nodded, hooking it back to her belt, knowing better than to argue with him.

“Take this,” Yoda said, holding out a small communicator to her, which she took and tucked in her belt. “Contact you I will, when a new task for you I have found,” he said with what sounded like a great deal of amusement. “An important part to play in the future, you will have.”

Sarenna nodded, stepping back before pausing.

“One thing, Master,” she said quietly. “I do have a message for Anakin. Will you tell him that his mother is free? He will take great comfort in knowing she is no longer a slave, and now lives in her own home.”

“Tell him, I will,” Yoda assured her.


	5. Chapter 5

_ Coruscant _   
_ (28 BBY) _

Sarenna sighed as she dropped her small backpack on the bed. It had been a long journey, but she finally felt she was where she needed to be. Perhaps not precisely in the dingy hole she had found to spend the night, a seedy motel that only took credits handed to them, no electronic transfers and no questions asked, but for now it would serve. 

The Jedi Temple had been amazing, like nothing she had ever seen before. The stories she’d heard from travellers and the nameless Jedi hadn’t begun to do it justice. Seeing the spires against the sky had been the most breathtaking thing she had seen in her young life, and she came from a planet with two suns, four moons, and some of the galaxy’s worst sandstorms. With a sigh, she hung the cloak over the back of the room’s single chair, and reached for the lightsabre, sitting down as she looked it over. 

It was a beautiful weapon, sleek and silver without many adornments, the switch glowing a brilliant bronze in the low light. She still didn’t know what colour the blade was, and she wasn’t sure this was the place she wanted to find out. The walls were thin, and someone might get suspicious if they heard it powering up. She was curious though, not knowing anything about Master Baravi. The Jedi on Tatooine had only showed her his sabre once, and it had been an odd yellow-green colour. 

With a sigh, Sarenna set the sabre aside and tugged at one of her dusty blonde braids, rubbing the bead near the end between her fingers. Tomorrow she was going to have to look for new clothes, something that made her look slightly less like a bounty hunter. For now though, she was exhausted, already drifting off to sleep. With both the sabre and her blaster within reach, she let her eyes fall shut and she was asleep in moments. 

* * *

Sarenna stared down at her cards, resisting the urge to gnaw on her lip. She wasn’t entirely sure how she’d ended up here, at a table with three Bith and a Rodian, playing Sabbac and winning. She’d never played the game in her life, but it was simple enough, and the Bith playing her was terrible at it. Sarenna showed her hand and the others around the table groaned.

“Just lucky,” the Bith, Nesbit, muttered as he threw down his cards. 

“Luck seems to have won me seventy-five percent of your bar, my friend,” Sarenna smiled. 

“One more hand, winner takes all,” the bars, now former, owner challenged. Sarenna shook her head.

“Right now I own three quarters of a bar I have no interest in. If you play another hand, I will win that, like the last seven. However, if you will concede now, not only will I allow you to maintain management of this fine establishment, but my only requests will be to have the loft converted into somewhere I can live suitably, and fifteen percent of the monthly profits,” she told him.

The Bith mumbled and chattered to his companion in his native language then narrowed his large eyes at her. “And if there are no profits?” he asked and Sarenna shrugged. 

“Then you don't have to give me anything that month. I need a safe place to live more then I need money,” she told him. He chattered some more, then finally nodded. 

“I run my bar, your name on the deed, you live upstairs and take fifteen percent of profit, if there is profit, yes?”

“Agreed,” Sarenna smiled as they shook hands. She was now the proud owner of most of a bar on the lower levels of Coruscant's middle ring. It was the perfect place to keep her eyes and ears open and bide her time. 

* * *

The bar, Angel’s Haven, was popular most nights of the week. Sarenna, known as Sol to her customers, had become a quick favourite, despite some of the regulars expressing concern that Nesbit was no longer the sole owner. She had charmed them with her smiles and her bright green eyes, her sympathetic ear, and the fact that she often forgot to charge them for the drinks she poured. Nesbit, on the other hand, had no such lapse in memory and always collected after Sol had moved on from one patron to the next.

It was the perfect place to wait for whatever was coming. She collected rumours and gossip, occasionally even hearing things about the Jedi. Even more occasionally a Jedi graced her bar with their presence, those who wanted to get away and drink somewhere they wouldn’t be recognised. Drinking was not strictly forbidden in the Jedi Order, but is was routinely discouraged to do it inside or near the Temple. More than once she had seen Obi-Wan Kenobi tucked in a booth in the far corner, watching her suspiciously, and she always chuckled to herself when she saw him.

Two months after she had arrived on Coruscant she had received the promised message from Master Yoda and returned to the Temple to accept her assignment. Most often he asked her to do things that were simple, but dangerous for the Jedi, like delivering messages to the lower rings of the planet or escorting certain unsavoury people here and there. Once or twice when she had been in the Temple, she had seen Anakin and Obi-Wan from down the hall, or from a few levels up on one of the many open sided walkways that circled the central area. She had smiled at how much Anakin had grown in the last four years, and resisted the urge to duck behind a pillar the one time Obi-Wan had looked up, directly at her. She had met his gaze levelly, knowing she was too far away for him to discern her features clearly, before she turned away, following Master Windu.

She’d done her research over the course of the several months she’d been on Coruscant, collecting rumours and public records alike. Obi-Wan, young though he was, was already a well known Jedi around Coruscant. He was famous for being able to talk his way out of anything, or into anything, if the stories of how he became Qui-Gon’s padawan held any truth. He was strong with the force, brilliantly intelligent, yet cautious. She knew the first time he came into the bar with a group of Jedi he had recognised her on some level as the same woman he’d seen in the Temple, but he’d said and done nothing, only appeared more often in her bar, alone, wathcing her. Amused, Sarenna had played along, pretending she had no idea who he was, beyond another patron looking for a late night drink.

Across the bar, Obi-Wan was watching the smiling, laughing owner who joked and commiserated with her patrons as if they were all her best friend. She was perhaps twenty-three years old, with waist length dirty blond hair that had been braided into countless braids and tied back in a ponytail on top of her head. Her green eyes laughed and danced along with the jingle of two earrings dangling from her left ear. Ruby studs winked at the room from her right. She wore brown cotton leggings, a dark top with thin straps, a belt that boasted jangling keys, a chain, and a strange leather tube across the small of her back that, as far as Obi-Wan had seen, she had never opened or even reached for. Her smiled was infectious and distracting, but that didn’t stop Obi-Wan from knowing there was something the force was trying to tell him about this girl, something important.

Over the last year he could swear he had seen her in the Jedi Temple more than once, though when he asked, no one knew what he was talking about. Even Master Yoda was mystified. Perhaps a little too mystified. Obi-Wan was no stranger to the sneaky way the Jedi Grandmaster went about things, and if Yoda knew something he wasn’t telling, then something was definitely afoot. He simply couldn’t shake the feeling that he already knew her somehow, and her laugh made his skin prickle like it did before a storm.

He was lost in thought when she swept by his table, then paused, retracing her steps and eyeing his empty glass.

“What can I get you, Master Jedi?” she asked and Obi-Wan blinked. He glanced down at his clothes and no, he hadn’t forgotten to change into plain civilian clothes, so how did she know?

“Another of the same, if you would,” he said politely, trying to hide his surprise as she smirked, turning away.

Obi-Wan was fascinating to her, he would have been even if he wasn’t also curious about who she was. He had such a calm assurance around him every time he entered her bar. He always went right for the same booth, which became mysteriously vacant by the time he reached it, he ordered the same drink, and watched her all evening. She knew he had seen her in the Temple, he likely knew that she knew, but neither of them said a word. His presence in the force was like nothing she had ever felt before, like a storm brewing, waiting out to sea to sweep across the land. She made sure to keep her own presence in the force tamped down to that of someone who was only mildly sensitive, but perhaps he was more powerful than she thought, and he could sense her presence anyway. Or perhaps the force was being nosey and simply showing him, despite her shields.

“Would you care to join me, Mistress Sol?” Obi-Wan asked politely when she returned with his drink and she grinned.

“It’s just Sol, please, I’m not that old yet,” she chuckled, then shook her head. “I’d love to join you, but unfortunately, I have to break up a fight between some Rodians. Another time?”

Obi-Wan opened his mouth to protest, seeing as the bar was perfectly calm, if not a little loud, when the first punch was thrown halfway across the room. He watched with amusement as she waded through the crowd and separated them easily before giving them both an earful and tossing them out of the bar with her own two hands. It occurred to him, as she returned to the bar, that she had to have known there would be a fight before it happened. She must have some sense of the force, but he could sense nothing from her beyond that of a normal person who could feel no connection. At least, not in the normal way. Before he could begin to puzzle it out, his communicator chimed and he sighed, finishing his drink and leaving the bar with a glance over his shoulder. Almost as if she knew he was watching, Sol looked up at him and winked, a small smirk on her face.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Eek I almost forgot to post this! ><

_ Coruscant _   
_ (27 BBY) _

“Master Yoda, you asked for me?” Sarenna said as she bowed to the small Jedi Master. His back was turned to her and he was gazing out the window to the city-planet below. 

“Ah, Sarenna, good that you have come,” Yoda said, turning. “An assignment, I have for you. Travel to the planet Zolan, in the mid-rim, you will. Protecting a diplomatic trade negotiation, your task is. Important it is, we keep good relations with the Zolanders. Fear an ambush, or an assassination, they do.”

“Yes, Master Yoda,” Sarenna nodded, not unused to requests such as this. The only difference was that usually she didn’t leave Coruscant on her jobs.

Over the last year Master Yoda had usually asked her to pick up and deliver messages, or escort people who couldn't be seen with Jedi or Republic guards. These people who were generally considered enemies of the Republic, thieves and smugglers and the like, but the Jedi seemed to have a hand in everything, including information, and smugglers had that in spades.

“Go alone, you will not,” the master continued and before Sarenna could voice her confusion, the door behind her hissed open.

She turned, her face lighting into a grin when she saw Anakin, his hair short and his padawan braid hanging over his shoulder. He had a lightsabre hanging from his belt, a new addition since the last time she had glimpsed him in the Temple, and behind him came Obi-Wan Kenobi, hands folded inside the sleeves of his robes and his face devoid of emotion. Anakin, however, had no such composure, and lit up as soon as he recognised her, running forward to wrap his arms around her. 

“Renna!” he nearly shouted as he hugged her. “What are you doing here?”

“Work for me, she does, young Skywalker,” Yoda told him and Anakin sprung away from her to bow to the master. 

“Forgive me, Master Yoda,” he said. “I was unaware you would be here. Obi-Wan didn't say.”

“I was unaware why this meeting was called,” Obi-Wan interjected. “I was told by Master Plo that I was summoned, nothing more.”

“To the mid-rim, you will go,” Yoda told him. “Protect a negotiation, you will. Trade relations with the Zolanders, we must keep. Offer them our protection, I did.”

“All three of us?” Anakin asked, the excitement still obvious in his voice even though he had tucked his hands behind his back and was clearly doing his best to remain calm. Yoda nodded and Obi-Wan raised a brow. 

“This seems unusual,” he said, glancing between Yoda and Sarenna.

“Ah, but the will of the force, it is,” Yoda said with what could only be called a smirk, and no one could argue with his words as the three of them bowed and left the room.

* * *

“So, how long have you been on Coruscant? Did you really free mom? What are you doing here? Did you-” 

“Anakin,” Sarenna laughed, ruffling his hair as they crossed the hanger toward the ship they would be taking to Zolan. “One question at a time. I can’t keep up.”

“Sorry,” he grinned.

“I’ve been on Coruscant a little over a year, and yes, I really did free your mother. Why do you think I didn’t leave with you before?” she asked with a chuckle.

“Really?” he grinned. “You never said.”

“I wasn’t sure I could,” she confided in him. “But she’s safe and happy, she’s living in my house now, and she has a good job she enjoys.”

“Thank you,” Anakin said, wrapping his arms around her tightly. He had grown so much since she had last been this close to him, but he could still tuck his head under her chin and she smiled, hugging him close. One day he was going to be taller than her, but for now he was still the little boy she had always known.

“I missed you,” he said quietly and she nodded. 

“I miss you too, little brat.”

“Hey,” he chuckled, pulling away and wiping his eyes on his sleeve.

“How’s Jedi training? You built a sabre,” she said, distracting him as he grinned, showing her the sabre, igniting the blue blade proudly.

“It’s amazing, well, a lot of it is. A lot of it is pretty boring,” he said, rolling his eyes.

“Let me guess, Galactic history and the rules of the Temple,” she grinned.

“How’d you know?” Anakin winked and Sarenna laughed, slinging an arm around his shoulders as they walked up the ramp.

“You haven’t changed a bit,” she shook her head.

“Anakin, we’ve been cleared for take off,” Obi-Wan’s voice came through the ships comm and Anakin grinned.

“That’s for me,” he chuckled. “Time to fly.”

“He lets you fly the ship?” Sarenna asked, eyebrow raised as she followed Anakin up to the cockpit.

“Master Obi-Wan hates to fly,” Anakin said in a stage whisper as he took his seat and started powering up the small craft.

“It’s not that I hate to fly,” Obi-Wan said, “Just that some of us don’t have the particular intuition for it.”

“I think you’re a good pilot, Master,” Anakin said, throwing a wink to Sarenna. She grinned as she strapped herself in, swearing that she caught Obi-Wan rolling his eyes.

* * *

The days on Zolan were mostly filled with nothing. There were people from multiple planets in the area discussing galactic trade routes and there was a lot of talking, most of which didn’t hold much interest. Once they had secured the area where the talks were taking place, and coordinated with the various other security details, there was hardly anything for them to do to fill the days. By the time they had been there three weeks, Anakin had repaired or upgraded every machine in the entire area, and built two new ones. Sarenna had spent the first few days paying attention to the trade discussions, before she took to spending her time patrolling the parameter and striking up conversations with the other guards. Obi-Wan was mostly still, and silent.

“What about that one?” Sarenna asked one morning, pointing at a droid wandering around the yard in front of the small house the three of them had been given near the edge of the compound. She sat with her feet up on the outdoor table, a knife in one hand and a meiloorun fruit in the other. Anakin had his arms crossed and his head buried in them, only glancing up with one eye when she spoke. Obi-Wan didn’t move, sat in the other chair with his eyes closed as he appeared to mediate.

“Did it last week,” Anakin said, voice bored. “Upgraded everything I could without overloading the thing.”

“You know you could be putting this time to good use training,” Obi-Wan pointed out, not opening his eyes. “When was the last time you practiced with that sabre that I didn’t force you?”

Anakin just shrugged, and Sarenna tossed her knife over in the air, catching it easily by the hilt.

“Anakin, this is serious,” Obi-Wan said, eyes opening as he glared at Anakin. “You’re still behind in your studies.”

“This is boring,” Anakin muttered, standing and wondering off to find some of the children from the village that he’d made friends with. Obi-Wan sighed, shaking his head at his padawan.

“Has he always been so…”

“Yes,” Sarenna laughed. “Always.”

* * *

It was late, and the moon was the only light on the dry plane that stretched behind the small compound, the wide space giving Sarenna plenty of space to practice her sabre forms, her arms moving steadily through the motions. She had learned enthusiastically when she was a child, and had practiced every day so that now she would never forget, the pattern burned deep into her bones. The movements were familiar, like an old friend, and brought her peace when her heart or mind were in turmoil. Tonight, they simply brought form to her thoughts, which were scattered.

“I haven't seen that style in years,” Obi-Wan observed from the shadow of the building, his approach silent, but not unnoticed. She didn't pause until she finished her set and then turned to him, her eyes twinkling. 

“Care for a sparring match, Master Obi-Wan?” she asked teasingly. 

It seemed like they had been circling each other the entire two months they had been on Zolan, as the negotiations dragged on and on. The thirteen year old Anakin didn’t appear to have noticed the looks that passed between his Jedi Master and his friend, too happy to be reunited with someone from his past and too bored with the ever lengthening mission, but Sarenna had surely noticed. She had seen Obi-Wan watching her, as she watched him, and often wondered if he felt the same inexplicable draw that she did.

Now, as he stepped out of the shadows and discarded his robe over a low bench, coming to stand before her and igniting his sabre with a smirk, she knew the strong attraction was mutual, and that he wasn’t going to dance around it any longer. The thought made her blood sing. She grinned, perhaps a bit recklessly, and held her hand out. Her sabre flew out of its tube at the small of her back and into her hand, igniting a brilliant green as her fingers closed around it, the colour contrasting with the bright blue of Obi-Wan’s in the pale purple moonlight.

“So,” he grinned. “That’s where you keep it. I’ve always wondered where you hid it away, since that day I saw you use it in your bar.”

They circled each other slowly, watching.

“You’ve been to my bar?” she asked, barely suppressing a laugh, remembering the incident he was talking about. Some customers had needed some encouragement to leave the establishment. It had been the last time he’d appeared in her bar, before this mission.

“Why my lady,” Obi-Wan swept an elegant bow. “I’m hurt. You served me drinks yourself, then you broke up a fight between some Rodians before it had even started.”

“That was you?” she grinned, winking as she lunged in, blades tapping together lightly before she danced out of the way again.

“Not a Jedi and yet here you are, on a mission from Master Yoda and carrying a lightsabre,” he said, steering the subject back to the blade. “You are full of surprises. And a great mystery.”

This time Obi-Wan moved in, feinting left, then attacking. She blocked, shifting forms and returning the blows with ease. Obi-Wan backed away again, wary, eyebrows raised.

“I’ve seen you at the Temple,” he said as they circled one another. They crossed blades again, not really even sparring, just testing each other gently. “I know you’ve told Anakin the story of how you came to be on Coruscant, I know you’re from his home world, but he hasn’t seen fit to share the story with me. I know you’re not a Jedi, and yet…”

Sarenna spoke as they sparred, telling him the story of how the Jedi had found her in the marketplace and trained her, before disappearing. 

“So your training was never completed,” Obi-Wan concluded. 

“He left books, data pads with the history of the Jedi and several training manuals. I’ve never been sure if he left them on purpose, or if whoever he was hiding from caught up to him and he didn’t have the chance to come back for anything. I read them all, a dozen times.”

“And taught yourself,” he nodded.

“It wasn’t until your Master came, all those years later, that I even spoke to another Jedi,” Sarenna said and Obi-Wan paused, taking a step back and lowering his sabre. 

“You knew Master Qui-Gon?” he asked, something in his eyes that was so lost that it nearly broke Sarenna’s heart.

“He didn’t mention me, did he?” she sighed. “In truth I think I frightened him a little.”

“Frightening Master Qui-Gon was not an easy task,” Obi-Wan said with an almost fond smile. “He was…reckless. He would have made a better teacher for Anakin than I do, I think.”

“Maybe someday I’ll show you what frightened him,” she said softly. “But then you would be frightened.” She was so used to keeping so much of her force presence hidden that to others she seemed only like she had a minor connection to it. She suspected Obi-Wan could see more, it was likely he could see she was strong, now that they knew each other some, but he would never be able to see how strong unless she showed him herself. Only Anakin knew how strong her connection to the force was, and only because he was the one being she’d never been able to completely hide her presence from. Somehow, he could see through any wall she put up, unless he was completely distracted, which was rare.

There was a wave of sadness from Obi-Wan as he thought of his old master, the feelings of anger and pain swirling around him before they rushed away into the force and he took a breath, looking up at Sarenna again and raising his sabre in a guard. Talking with her and sparring with her was a new experience for him. It was like meditating on his feet, finding peace in movement. 

“You didn’t come with us,” he said after a while, blades crossing as they moved, working a little harder now to find an opening, an advantage. Both had set their sabres low, so any hit would only be a mild stun, not an injury, but neither had come close to landing a blow yet.

“I had things to do, still,” Sarenna said quietly. “I wanted to make sure Anakin’s mother was free, and there were…things I had to settle. Debts owed, to me and to others. When I left finally, and started to make my way to the core, the journey wasn’t straight forward. Some old friends run a trade route that goes near the core, but it takes months to even get close. I was on Kattada when I started to hear a ringing, like nothing I’d ever heard before. I realised finally that it was someone calling out through the force, and when I followed, I found Master Baravi. He asked me to bring something to Master Yoda, and told me to take his lightsabre,” she held the blade a little higher and Obi-Wan nodded, “and then he was gone. I brought him to the Temple, and Master Yoda told me that the sabre had come to me, so it would stay with me.”

“How very odd,” Obi-Wan said. 

“I wish I could have saved him,” she sighed, spinning away as Obi-Wan attacked. “I would have liked to have known him.”

“I only met Master Baravi once, but he was a wise Jedi and he trusted the force implicitly. I’m sure he knew there was something bigger at work when he gifted you his sabre.”

“I only wish I knew what it was,” Sarenna admitted. “I suspect Master Yoda knows. I suspect Master Yoda knows everything.”

“Every youngling in the Temple suspects that Master Yoda knows everything,” Obi-Wan chuckled. “I haven’t yet seen them proven wrong.”

Their blades locked with a clash and Obi-Wan twisted. A moment later both sabres had flow out of their hands, and without missing a beat they switched to hand to hand combat. A series of steps, twists, blocks, and one quick foot, and they tumbled to the ground, tussling for control. They rolled twice before there was stillness, silence except for the sounds of their heavy breathing. Sarenna’s eyes glinted, and Obi-Wan smirked.

“Well done,” he said, his throat brushing against the gleaming blade held just above his skin, their eyes locked. A quick flash and the dagger landed point down in the dirt three feet away as Obi-Wan flipped Sarenna onto her back, where she landed with a light grunt, the air knocked out of her. 

“I didn’t know Jedi could fight dirty,” she grinned, enjoying the flush that had crept up his face as they sparred. It looked good on him, his hair disheveled and a smear of dirt across one cheek.

“Well, we can’t give away all our secrets, now can we?” he smirked, his hands sliding up from her wrists and intertwining their fingers over her head. 

Slowly, giving her time to turn away, he lowered his head until they were sharing breath, their lips an inch apart. Sarenna shifted, wrapping one leg around his hip and pulling him closer. Later, they couldn’t say who had moved first to close that last distance, but all at once they were kissing, hot and desperate as their bodies settled fully together. A few moments later they had managed to pull themselves up and were stumbling towards Obi-Wan’s room, laughing quietly as they tugged at one another’s clothes. 

* * *

It wasn’t quite dawn yet when Sarenna woke, and for a moment she was disoriented. Then she remembered, glancing down to see Obi-Wan’s arm still around her, holding her loosely, as if making sure she was still there. She sighed quietly, closing her eyes for a long moment before she eased her way out of his hold and dressed silently. She took one last look at him, sleeping soundly with a soft smile on his face, before she went to her own room and packed her things, stopping only long enough to slip into Anakin’s room and press a kiss to his forehead with a whispered apology, before she slipped out into the first pale light of the morning.

* * *

End Part I


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pssst I'm early, (technically it's 3 minutes to midnight/Friday in my timezone) but I'm just so excited because we switched internet providers and IT ACTUALLY WORKS NOW! SO! Have Feb's two chapters! Enjoy!

Part II  


* * *

  
Sarenna wrinkled her nose at the smell of Nal Hutta. It was a horrible place, half swamp, half garbage dump, but it had a shipyard where she could get something that would keep her moving, and best of all, the owner owed her a favour from a time on Tatooine when he’d nearly lost his head to some of Jabba’s thugs over a card game in one of the many shady bars in Mos Espa.

She sighed as she sat down at one of the outdoor cafes and ordered the least disgusting thing she could find on the menu. She shouldn’t have run, she knew that. She knew she’d left behind hurt, and she wished she could change that, but there was something about Obi-Wan, about the way the force moved around him. If she’d stayed, it would have swallowed them both whole, and likely destroyed them. She only hoped he would understand. She knew Anakin wouldn’t, he wouldn’t understand why she had just disappeared when seemingly nothing had happen. Obi-Wan certainly wouldn’t tell his apprentice what had happened, and it would leave the boy confused and angry. 

Groaning, Sarenna let her head fall into her hands, force senses sweeping out around her like an alarm system while, for a moment, she let down her physical guard. Things had always been so simple. Follow the force, listen to the echos, trust in the path she was being led down. Now she was confused, unsure, doubting. She didn’t regret what had happened between her and Obi-Wan, and she knew he wouldn’t regret it either, but once again, everything had changed.

She didn’t know what she was going to do now, or where she would go. She could go back to Coruscant, of course, she still had her bar there, but something…no. Now wasn’t the time to be in the core, not so close to the Temple, to Obi-Wan. She listened to the force, listened for guidance, but very little came. She ate, still thinking, trying to settle her mind. She needed to meditate properly, to listen. Maybe when she took off again she would set a hyperspace course to somewhere and then she could calm her thoughts and look for a direction. 

She paid for her meal, trying very hard not to think about what she’d just eaten, quietly vowing to do everything in her power never to land on this planet again if she could possibly avoid it, before she went through the market and junk dealers and bought a few things, then returned to her ship and flew to the nearby fuel yard. 

“Fill it up, would you?” Sarenna said distractedly, tossing a Rodian a handful of credits, enough to fuel the ship and fill the extra tank in the hold. 

“You looking for work?” he asked as he counted out the credits.

“I’m fine,” Sarenna told him and he shrugged.

“You seem out of your way,” he said as he hooked up her ship to the fuel line. “You should talk to Maz, on Takodana.”

“Oh?” Sarenna raised an eyebrow. Well, she had asked for a direction, and she’d heard about the hub of sorts on Takodana before, but never been.

“If you’re looking for work,” the Rodian shrugged. 

“Takodana, hm? Alright. I’ll have a look.”

* * *

_ Taanab  
(25 BBY) _

“You know, this happens every time,” Sarenna sighed, inspecting her nails. “You might as well stop trying to double cross me, Hondo. It will never work.”

“Ah well,” the pirate sighed. “I have to have my fun, don’t I?”

“Well, well, what do we have here?” a dark voice interrupted them and Sarenna turned, looking the woman up and down, taking in her dark clothes, grey skin, and pale purple tattoos. In an instant Sarenna knew this woman was dangerous, strong with the force, with the dark side. Her anger was swirling around her like a cloud, and Sarenna unconsciously took a step back, already reaching for her sabre.

“Er, hello,” Hondo said, glancing around. “Are you who were supposed to meet? Only I thought we were supposed to-”

“Shut up,” the woman snapped. “You have something I want.”

“Are you paying for it?” Hondo asked, never one to be intimidated, especially by other thieves.

In response the woman pulled two sabres from behind her back and ignited them, both glowing out red in the darkness, casting her into a sinister light as Hondo suddenly backed away. Sarenna’s own sabre flashed into her hand, green blade speeding out as the red sabres came at her. She barely blocked in time.

“Jedi scum,” the woman seethed, her eyes narrowed as she attacked. 

It was all Sarenna could do to hold her off, having never been in real combat with another force wielder before, much less against two blades. She knew she was outmatched almost at once, and she called on the force to help her, jumping easily to the next roof and trying to draw the woman away from everyone else. Hondo already had his blaster out and his men were scattering, trying to get their illicit cargo back to the ship. The buyer certainly wasn’t coming now. She should have known, rooftops were a bad place for an exchange.

“What is a Jedi doing with this pirate scum?” the woman hissed, but Sarenna wasn’t going to answer. She was too busy concentrating on blocking the red sabres. Out of the corner of one eye she noticed others now, attacking Hondo and his men down in the yard. 

Taking a breath as the woman disengaged, Sarenna gathered the force around her and pushed, knocking the other off her feet for long enough that she could find her own balance again before the blades were coming at her once more. She knew she wouldn’t win this fight, she would be lucky to survive if Hondo didn’t get the ship off the ground soon. She blocked as the blades came down at her, then twisted to slice a crate in two as it flew at her. The distraction was enough, and one of the blades came down, slashing across her face as she screamed in pain. She stumbled back, one hand over her eye, unable to tell if it was damaged, trying to block both blades with one hand. She was too close to the edge of the roof, and when she took a step back, her knee hit the low wall. A blast of force energy sent her flying over the edge, the world going black as she rushed toward the ground.

Cargo loaded and ship ready to take off, Hondo looked around just in time to see her fall, and despite his admittedly overblown sense of an entirely self-serving life, he ran over to check on her. When he reached her she was unmoving, but still breathing shallowly.

“No, no, no, no, this is not good,” he muttered as he felt for her pulse, finding it weak and thready. “Why are you always getting me into trouble, Sarenna?”

She was injured, and badly enough that he was afraid to move her. He ignored his inner voice telling him to leave her and save himself, because occasionally he actually liked his friends, and Sarenna was one of them. Instead he fished in her belt pouch looking for the homing beacon he knew she carried. He shouted in triumph when his hand closed around it.

“I cannot help you,” he said sadly, poking at the buttons on the little disc until a green light blinked. “I hope whoever gave you this can reach you in time, my friend.”

With the tracking beacon activated and lying beside her, Hondo grabbed his gun and charged back into the square, shooting wildly at the dark figure as she jumped from roof to roof.

“You! You have killed my friend!” he shouted. “You will pay for that!”

He ran, chasing her toward her ship, trying to lead her away from Sarenna and make sure the woman thought she’d succeeded and killed the other sabre wielder. 

“Boss! You’re going to get toasted if you don’t get on the ship now!” one of his men shouted from the ship that was following him from overhead. 

“Get her!” he shouted, waving at the pale woman as he grabbed a rope and climbed onto his ship, which far outmatched the tiny thing the grey woman was flying. They easily chased her off the planet and out of the sector, and Hondo could only hope he bought enough time for whoever was at the other end of the beacon to reach Sarenna.


	8. Chapter 8

_ Jedi Temple _   
_ (25 BBY) _

“Master Obi-Wan!”

Obi-Wan looked up from the computer terminal, staring at the out of breath youngling. Master Jocasta was watching them with a raised eyebrow and he felt the need to quiet the boy in the silence of the library.

“You must come to the Halls of Healing! Right away,” the boy insisted and Obi-Wan nodded automatically, closing his archive access and standing.

“Who has been hurt?” he asked as he followed the young boy out of the library and down the hall, taking longer steps to match his near run. He knew Anakin was fine, the boy was back in their rooms tinkering with something, and he hadn't felt any kind of disturbance in the force that might have been one of the other masters. He didn't know who else he would be called to see in the Halls of Healing.

“Master Yoda told me to bring you and to tell you she is a friend of yours,” the youngling said and Obi-Wan paused, before walking faster. There was only one person he knew that Yoda would fetch him for, even though it had been over two years since he had last seen her.

By the time they reached the Halls of Healing, it seemed like half the temple was there, gathered around the doors and muttering to each other. He carefully pushed his way through the crowd, ignoring the mutterings and whispers and questioning stares, not for the first time feeling annoyance at the horrible gossips that Jedi made.

“Master, what happened?” he asked when he found Yoda.

“Returned, Sarenna has. Injured she is, gravely injured,” Yoda said and Obi-Wan felt his heart beat faster, fear twisting and turning around him before it flowed away and he took a deep breath.

“Was she found or did she come here herself?” he asked, looking through the curtains surrounding a single bed in the middle of the room. Three droids and four Jedi healers were moving around swiftly and efficiently, and the force was swirling around them. Now that he knew she was here, he looked for her presence and found that he was nearly overwhelmed by it because her shields were weakened. He didn’t know how he hadn’t noticed as soon as she was brought into the Temple.

“Warded, she is,” Yoda said quietly, as if reading his mind. “See what you do, they cannot,” he gestured to the crowd outside the doors.

“Masters,” Healer Che said as she approached, nodding to them and preventing Yoda from answering Obi-Wan’s question, even if he had planned to. “She will recover, but it will be a long and difficult road. It will be months before she is close to fully healed, but she will survive. You may see her now, if you wish, but only for a moment. We're preparing her for at least a week in a bacta tank, then she will have to have several surgeries on her knee, and possibly one on her arm as well.” 

Obi-Wan took a deep breath and tucked his hands in his robes, preparing himself for what he was going to see on the other side of the curtain, stepping forward as Healer Che pulled the cloth back.

Obi-Wan sucked in a breath as he took in Sarenna's still form, her face pale and her left arm and leg in pressure casts. There was a large bacta patch over the left side of her face, and her hair was free from the braids that he had never seen her without. She was deathly still, her breathing shallow and obviously laboured. 

“I'm afraid her face will scar,” Healer Che said quietly, noticing where Obi-Wan was looking. “The cut was made with a laser sword.”

“A lightsabre?” Obi-Wan asked, startled. Healer Che shrugged.

“Or something similar. Lightsabres are not the only laser swords in the galaxy.”

Obi-Wan nodded, backing away when the healers crowded around the bed.

“The bacta is ready, she will be immersed for several days. We will let you know when she can be safely removed.

“Thank you,” Obi-Wan bowed, in a slight haze as he left, casting one more glance at her before the doors closed. Now he just had to tell Anakin.

* * *

Six days later Obi-Wan was back in the Halls of Healing, waiting for Sarenna to wake up. He'd told Anakin he couldn't come yet, that he had to wait until she was awake and had some of her strength back, and the boy had been surprisingly accepting of it. Anakin had spent a great deal of time since he'd learned she was injured meditating and reading ahead in his books, focusing on the chapters on healing. Obi-Wan had noted all this with a proud smile, somewhat lost in his own concern.

Now, Sarenna was dressed in a simple cream robe that tied along the side and her hair was clean and brushed, braided in one long braid that fell over her shoulder. Some of her colour had returned and the slash on her face was nothing but a faint pink line from just above her eyebrow and down across the side of her cheek, almost to her jaw. It hadn't come as close to her eye as it could have, but any way you looked at it, she was lucky. Her arm was in a small cast to keep it immobile, but a good amount of the damage had been healed by the bacta and the healers who had used the force to encourage the bone to reknit. The rest would have to mend in its own time. Her leg was another matter, still immobilised in the pressure cast from her hip to her ankle. Because they couldn't risk removing the cast when she went into the tank, the bacta hadn't been able to do as much on her leg as on the rest of her, and just as Healer Che predicted, she would need three surgeries or more to mend her knee fully.

She'd been removed from the bacta that morning and weaned off the sedative, so now all Obi-Wan could do was wait. He sat quietly by her side, watching the sky outside changing as afternoon slipped into evening before he saw her move. He took her hand as her eyes fluttered open and he smiled.

“Hello,” Obi-Wan said softly, gripping her hand gently, just a reassuring pressure. Her fingers squeezed around his and she smiled ruefully. 

“Hello,” she whispered. “I'm sorry I left-”

“Don't, Sarenna,” he said immediately. “There's no need to apologise for anything.”

“Where am I?” Sarenna asked after a moment, glancing around.

“The Halls of Healing, in the Jedi Temple,” Obi-Wan told her and she nodded, drifting back to sleep. A few minutes later she woke, as if she'd never slept and smiled at him.

“It's good to see you,” she said, though he had to strain to hear it.

“And you,” he smiled. “You'll be staying here in the Temple to recuperate. I'm afraid it will be several months before you can walk properly again, you did extensive damage to your leg. Healer Che was able to save it, but the recovery is going to be difficult.”

“Mm,” Sarenna nodded, her eyes drifting shut as she sighed. “I've had deals go sour but this was nothing like I'd ever seen. I must have fallen ten stories.”

“Your injuries were consistent with a fall, yes,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “But the injury to your face is from some type of laser sword.”

“There was a woman,” Sarenna said carefully, opening her eyes again. “Pale, like ashes. She had to be a Sith, or an apprentice. She had two red sabres and she was strong, angry. She came out of nowhere and I didn't have the skill to defend myself. The last thing I remember is my leg hitting the edge of the wall and then falling.”

“You're lucky to have survived,” Healer Che said as she bustled over, shooing Obi-Wan out of the way and checking Sarenna's vitals and injuries. He moved to the side but kept her hand in his. “Your arm is fractured to such a degree that I don't want to use the setter on it any more than we already have, the rest will have to heal on its own. You will have scars on your face and shoulder. It’s too early to tell if the wound on your hip will leave a scar as well, and your knee is destroyed. You'll have to heal some before we can begin a reconstruction and it will take at least three procedures before you walk again.”

Sarenna nodded, her eyes drifting shut as her hand tightened on Obi-Wan's. “Thank you,” she whispered.

“Sleep,” Obi-Wan smiled, brushing a stray strand of hair out of her face. “I'll bring Anakin to see you in the morning.”


	9. Chapter 9

A little over a week later, Sarenna persuaded Healer Che to release her to the quarters she had been assigned in the guest wing of the temple, and she had sighed with relief when she sank down on the couch, her leg stretched out in front of her and her arm bound in a sling across her chest. Anakin had pushed the hover chair they'd given her and helped her move from it to the couch and now stood with his hands behind his back, fingers twitching.

“Anakin, just say it,” Sarenna sighed, closing her eyes. She heard the scrape of a chair and Anakin sat down, his energy twitching almost visibly around him.

“Why did you leave? We were attacked after you left Zolan, we needed your help and you were just gone, and Obi-Wan never told me why,” he said, anger bursting out of him, anger he had clearly been carrying for two years.

“It's complicated,” Sarenna sighed. “I was a danger to the mission, I had to remove myself from the situation before either of you got hurt.”

“I don't understand...” he said quietly and Sarenna smiled sadly. 

“When you're older, you will.”

“Is it because you and Master Obi-Wan had sex?” Anakin asked bluntly and Sarenna's eyes flew open.

“Anakin Skywalker!” she nearly shouted and he shrugged.

“What? He told me!”

“He did not.”

There was a pause.

“All right, no, not in so many words, but he got this look on his face when he talked about you and I might have caught a fleeting thought or two before he buried it. I don't understand why that made you leave us though,” Anakin grumbled.

“You’re still such a brat,” she groaned, closing her eyes with a sigh. After a long moment she opened them and looked at him.

“You know the Jedi code by now, I’m sure,” she said, catching his frown. “I found myself growing attached to Obi-Wan and I didn’t want…I didn’t want to put either of you in danger because of it.”

Anakin swore colourfully in Huttese and Sarenna raised her eyebrows. 

“I hate the code,” Anakin muttered. “I hate that we’re not meant to feel.”

“It isn’t that, Anakin,” Sarenna sighed. “It…can be hard to be objective when someone you care about is in danger. The Jedi are meant to look at the bigger picture. To look to the many, not to the one.”

“And you think Obi-Wan wouldn’t have stayed objective?” Anakin demanded.

“I wouldn’t have,” Sarenna admitted. “And I didn’t want to risk that he felt the same way for me as I did for him. I didn’t want to put him in a position to have to make that choice,” she said, looking away.

“You care about him,” Anakin said quietly. 

“And I left because of it. Can you understand why?” she said softly.

The boy sighed and nodded, scrubbing his hands across his face. “I don’t like it, but I do think I understand a little better.” 

* * *

Sarenna stumbled, barely holding her scream as she toppled to the ground. Down the hall and up three stories, Obi-Wan sat up with a gasp, fumbling for his shirt as he pushed the covers aside. He was out the door before he could completely pull it over his head, running barefoot through the halls until he reached Sarenna's door, her pain like a beacon in the force. Waving his hand over the pad, the door slid open and he felt her immediate relief.

“Don't try to move,” he said quietly as he came and crouched beside her, one hand on her shoulder as he let the calming energy of the force flow steadily between them, pushing away the pain. She sighed, slumping against him as she breathed a little easier.

“I suppose I wasn't as ready as I thought I was,” she admitted quietly and Obi-Wan smiled. 

“Anakin once broke his arm in six places and insisted on leaving the Halls of Healing the next day. Trust me, I know something about stubborn patients. Let's get you back to bed,” he said softly and she nodded.

With Obi-Wan's support at her uninjured side, they made it back to her room and soon he had her tucked in carefully and had brought the glass of water she had been on her way to get when she fell.

“Can you sleep?” Obi-Wan asked, pulling a chair from the main room in so he could sit next to her. She sighed, shrugging.

“I don't know. It hurts, but if I take the pain pills then...it cuts everything off,” she said softly. She’d never been without the force and it was a disconcerting feeling.

“The force will still be there when you heal,” Obi-Wan said comfortingly. This was also something he'd been through with Anakin, who had described the same sensation. Sometimes he wondered at the similarities between them.

“Can you...” she asked, not even sure how to ask. “I don't know what you know about healing...”

“I can help you sleep, if that's what you want,” he said, smoothing back her hair with a soft smile. “Another thing I became adept at when Anakin was younger. He's always had terrible nightmares.”

“I know,” Sarenna said quietly. “Even as a baby he had nightmares. Shmi used to sing to him, to make the monsters go away.”

“Well, I can't sing, but I can certainly help you sleep for a good few hours,” Obi-Wan chuckled and Sarenna smiled.

“I am sorry, that I ran. After that night,” she said softly. “I know the Jedi aren’t meant to form attachments in the same way as others, and I knew if I stayed there was a chance…”

Obi-Wan smiled, squeezing her hand. He understood, even without her admission, an admission that as much as said she could have easily fallen in love with him, and she had known he could fall in love with her. She had left to protect them both, and if she had stayed, it would have likely ended badly, especially given Obi-Wan's rather tragic history.

“I understand,” he said softly. “I never stopped caring for you, and I did miss you, but I trusted that you were safe, that the force protected you.” He eyed her bandaged arm and the pressure cast on her leg. “Well, perhaps it could have done a little better at the protection part.”

Sarenna laughed, then groaned, her good hand clutching her ribs. The healers and the bacta tank may have done good work, but Healer Che had informed her she would still be sore for the next several weeks as her bones finished knitting together. 

“Shh, get some sleep,” Obi-Wan said softly, resting his hand on her forehead and reaching for the force, letting it flow though him and sooth her, brushing aside the pain and frustration and helping her sink into a deep and restful sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

The days at the temple passed quietly into weeks as Sarenna healed, and read. Master Yoda had granted her full access to the Jedi archives with much amusement, and Anakin had helped set up a computer terminal that Sarenna could use in her own rooms, since she would still be bound to her hover chair until they could reconstruct her knee. He had also modified the chair so that she could take it anywhere with ease, though she had stopped him from adding any rocket jets to it.

After three and a half months, her arm was almost fully healed, and she had been through her first knee surgery. The time seemed to pass quickly, but not so quickly that she ever felt harried or rushed. She had simply settled into her new life, knowing it would be the same for some time, and there was no reason not to adapt. There was so much history in the temple and so much to learn, she was never bored or wanting for something to do. She had met other Jedi, all of whom were curious about her skills, her particular force traits, and her early training. Some offered to teach her new things, others sat and had long discussions about historical events, or politics, or the mechanics of lightsabres. Before she knew it, it had been almost six months since she’d returned to the temple. 

Anakin visited often, when he and Obi-Wan weren’t off world, or he didn’t have classes to attend. He had tried to skip class to see her once or twice, and been sent on his way with a stern talking to and the promise that her door would remain locked if he did it again. He was not to miss his lectures on any account. Still, despite how he wished to be a Jedi when he was a child, he seemed restless, and Sarenna was worried. One day, when he was bustling around her small kitchen making tea, ranting, she thought she knew what was bothering him.

“Anakin, come sit down,” she called, reaching out a tendril of calm energy to him.

“Coming,” he mumbled, returning to the main room with the tray of tea and cups, setting it down and then flopping on the sofa next to her. The hover chair sat off to the side, within reach, but unobtrusive.

“I wanted to talk to you about the code,” she said, and by the flare of anger in his eyes, she had been right about what had been knowing at him.

“I don’t want to talk about the karking code,” Anakin hissed.

“Hear me out,” Sarenna said sternly, staring him down until he huffed and settled back into the couch. “I know you dislike the council and the code, but there are things you should know, things I should have told you years ago, but I didn’t think you were old enough yet, and then Master Qui-Gon came.”

“The code is wrong, and stupid,” Anakin hissed and Sarenna sighed.

“The code is an arbitrary guideline,” she said gently and Anakin looked at her, startled. “Yes, it is considered law, but the history of the Jedi is long, and expansive, and much of the knowledge has become clouded, history lost to the ages. What you’ve learned, what I’ve learned, doesn’t even begin to dent the archives. You’ve never made a study of the code, but there were many times when it was different, sometimes stricter, sometimes more lenient, sometimes almost unrecognisable.”

Anakin just frowned.

“The code now holds that the Jedi can have no attachments, because attachment leads to the dark side. But, the idea that attachment leads to the dark side isn’t true, and has never been true. What leads to the dark side the fear of losing that attachment, the inability to let go, and not to dwell in anger and sadness. There is always a chance that a loved one may pass on before you, and what you must understand is how to celebrate their life and allow them their peace. What you cannot do is hold on to grief and resentment.”

“They try to teach us not to have emotions,” Anakin said grumpily.

“It isn’t about not having emotions, Anakin, it’s about not letting them rule you. You must be in control, you must remember to let your emotions flow through you and pass you by. By hanging onto them, by feeling them over and over, you feed the darkness growing in them. Feel your emotions, let them to do their work, let them guide you, then let them go. It isn't about not feeling, it's about living beyond simple feeling, living for the force, living as one with the force. It’s about freeing yourself.”

“That doesn't sound any easier than not having them at all,” Anakin said and Sarenna smiled softly, taking a deep breath.

“It isn’t, Anakin, it’s the hardest thing you’ll ever do. But you can’t let your emotions rule you,” she told him. “Recite the current code for me,” she said and Anakin stared at her before complying, though his displeasure was evident.

“There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the force.”

“Good,” she said. “Do you know the Sith code?”

“Why would I know the Sith code? The Jedi don’t teach that,” Anakin muttered. 

“Peace is a lie, there is only Passion. Through Passion I gain Strength.Through Strength I gain Power. Through Power I gain Victory. Through Victory my chains are Broken. The Force shall free me.”

Anakin was frowning even harder now. “That…that sounds like it actually makes sense, but it gives me chills.”

Sarenna nodded and took a breath. “Now listen. There is passion, yet there is peace. There is strength, yet there is serenity. There is power, yet there is harmony. There is chaos, yet there is order. In life there is freedom, in death there is purpose, for the force is all things, and I am the force.”

“What was that?” Anakin asked, wide eyed.

“That, was the old code of the Grey Jedi,” came Obi-Wan's voice, laced with disapproval. They both looked over to the door to see him standing there, his face not quite so blank as it usually was.

“Grey Jedi?” Anakin asked, looking between them.

“A middle ground,” Sarenna told him. “A Grey Jedi does not follow the code you know, the code of the council. Some aren’t even a part of the order. They dedicate themselves to the balance of the force, something the order has lost sight of through their fear of the dark side. A Grey Jedi will do what an ordinary Jedi wouldn't, in the name of keeping the balance at any cost. They may even tap into the dark side from time to time. Everything in this universe is about balance. Good cannot exist without evil, nor evil without good, and the Grey Jedi understand this, and work toward it tirelessly. Obi-Wan knows this, because Master Qui-Gon was a Grey Jedi,” Sarenna said, her eyes never leaving Obi-Wan.

“Really?” Anakin asked, eyes wide. 

Obi-Wan nodded stiffly, stepping into the room so the door shut behind him.

“There were times when Master Qui-Gon was not...in line with the council. There were many times. He was never declared a Grey Jedi officially, there hasn't been a Grey Jedi in the Order in years,” he said. “It is true that much of the Jedi history has been lost to time, or to the sheer size of the archives, and we don't have time in our lifespans to teach the history of over a thousand generations.”

“Think about what I've told you, Anakin,” Sarenna said softly and Anakin looked at her, a new light in his eyes as he nodded.

“Master, may I go?” he asked Obi-Wan and Obi-Wan nodded, the air crackling around him as he stared at Sarenna. Anakin scrambled to get his boots and fled, leaving the two adults alone with the tension in the room.

“Sarenna, you should not have told him that,” Obi-Wan said the second the door was closed, his voice bristling with anger. “You should not have told him the code of the Sith!”

“And leave him in ignorance?” she scoffed. “That is exactly what is wrong with the teachings. You do not show them both sides.”

“To know the dark side is dangerous!”

“To ignore that the dark side is part of the balance of the force is ignorant hubris,” Sarenna snapped. 

They stared at one another for a long moment, Obi-Wan shaking visibly with anger, his fists clenched, before he closed his eyes and took a deep breath, releasing his anger to the force.

“Obi-Wan, you know full well Anakin will never be the Jedi the council wants him to be,” Sarenna said. “He feels too strongly, loves too deeply. They will shun him for it, they already do. If he were to declare as a Grey Jedi now, it might save a lot of trouble later on.”

“Sarenna...”

“You know I'm right, Obi-Wan,” she interrupted. “You know deep down why it was Qui-Gon who found him as a boy. Perhaps you pushed aside so much of what he taught you after his death because you felt that his beliefs contributed to how he died, but if Anakin is to fulfil his destiny, he must know there is more to the Jedi than the council and their code.”

“He is my pupil,” Obi-Wan said weakly, the fight almost gone from him as her words swirled around his head. He knew she was right, he just didn't want to acknowledge it. He sat down heavily beside her, running his hand through his hair.

“He is my brother, Obi-Wan, I have known him all my life. He is a Grey Jedi, as much as Qui-Gon was, as much as I would be. And if he is the chosen one, the one meant to bring balance, he needs to understand what balance is.”

“I’m not sure any of us understand what balance is anymore,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “I fear you are more right in your words than any of us will admit.”

“You just did,” Sarenna smiled and Obi-Wan managed a light huff in return.

“Did you know, Master Yoda has spoken to me about you,” Obi-Wan said quietly. “He asked if I thought you should be offered admittance to the order.”

Sarenna blinked. “That would be…unconventional, but not without precedent,” she said. She had done extensive research into Jedi who joined the Temple at a later age, mostly for Anakin’s sake, but she had also wondered about herself now and then.

“Master Yoda reminded me that the force is unconventional,” Obi-Wan chuckled. “Just like Master Qui-Gon.”

“I suppose it is,” Sarenna smiled.

Obi-Wan took a deep breath. “Sarenna…”

“What is it?” she asked when Obi-Wan fell silent for long moments. 

Obi-Wan’s hands curled and uncurled around the cushion and his energy was twisting around him almost nervously. Sarenna gasped softly when he looked up and met her eyes, before leaning closer and kissing her, one hand coming up to rest gently on her cheek, thumb brushing her scar tenderly.

“Oh,” she breathed when he pulled away just a breath. He sighed, then moved back, refusing to meet her eyes.

“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I know you said you walked away before because…well, because you might feel too strongly, but I-” he paused when she lay her hand over his and tentatively, he looked at her.

She smiled, reaching her hand up to caress his cheek, fingers skimming along his beard and tucking a strand of overlong hair behind his ear. 

“Obi-Wan, I’ve come so far since then. I understand now, how to care without being consumed by it, how to love without being blinded by it, how to let go when it is time to let go. I feared loving you once because I worried it would destroy us both. Now I think it could only make us stronger.”

Obi-Wan smiled, taking her other hand in his and twinging their fingers together. “You found wisdom, out there in the galaxy,” he teased. 

“And I’ve found peace, and joy, and understanding here in the temple,” she smiled, then drew him closer again, kissing him softly as he sighed.


	11. Chapter 11

_ Jedi Temple _  
_ (24 BBY) _

Sarenna smiled as a hand rested on her shoulder, but she didn't take her eyes away from the display in front of her, concentrating on the layout of the star system she was memorising. She raised one hand to cover the fingers that gripped her shoulder gently as she committed the last moon to memory.

“How was the mission?” she asked as she finally turned her eyes away and looked up at Obi-Wan. He smiled and shrugged slightly. He looked tired, his hair falling in his eyes and his cheeks lacking their usual colour.

“Nothing special. Escorting politicians is rarely glamorous, and this assignment was particularly dull. You're looking well,” he smiled gently.

Sarenna smiled as she pushed her chair back and stood, only leaning slightly on the table next to her as she reached for a carved wooden cane, her right hand fitting over the handle perfectly. 

“I can walk on my own again,” she grinned, demonstrating as she limped a few feet away then turned and came back. “Not very well, but I have one more surgery and then I should be able to start strengthening the knee again. The Healers think I can walk without the cane in two or three more months.”

“Wonderful!” Obi-Wan said enthusiastically. “And may I escort you anywhere, with your newfound mobility?” he asked with a sweeping bow, causing Sarenna to giggle as she reached for his arm, linking hers with is as they left the library. He noticed she had started braiding her hair again, though not as much as before, and a great sheet of the wavy blond tresses fell down her back almost to her waist. Her colour had returned as well, fully. Even when she had been mostly recovered from her injuries the past few months, she had still been pale. Now Obi-Wan could see the peace and the serenity that swirled around her in the force, a quiet contentment that life in the temple had brought her.

“Well, I’ve been watching Anakin’s sabre classes, and spending a lot of time in the gardens. Anakin’s class starts soon,” she told him as they walked, rather aimlessly toward the training rooms, and talked, catching up on the last few weeks. 

Obi-Wan had been gone almost two months on a diplomatic mission and Anakin had been deemed too young and too impatient to accompany him. Anakin hadn’t been happy when Obi-Wan had left him behind, but he’d adjusted, spending most of his time outside of class with Sarenna, nose usually buried in some text or other. She wasn’t entire sure what he’d been studying, but she had seen more texts on healing, and several on star charts, mechanics, and space travel. And he was becoming patient.

“You’ve corrupted my padawan,” Obi-Wan teased and Sarenna chuckled. 

When they arrived at the training rooms the younger group was still practicing, so Obi-Wan and Sarenna found a place on the next level, where they could watch through the window down into the small arena. Obi-Wan’s eyes were immediately drawn to one of the younglings, who was far outpacing the other students both in speed and skill.

“Who is that?” he asked, unable to tell anything more about the youngling because of the heavy padding.

“That, is Ahsoka,” Sarenna said with a smirk. “She’s the best in her age group, possibly in the next age group. There’s been talk about moving her up to the advanced classes, and she’s eleven.”

“Goodness,” Obi-Wan said quietly, watching as the girl soundly defeated her opponent and tugged her helmet off. She was togruta, like Master Ti, and she already wore an Akul headdress, something almost unheard of in one so young.

“She’s already slain an Akul?” he asked, eyes wide. 

“Master Ti took her a few weeks ago,” Sarenna nodded. “I’ve been watching her, Obi-Wan. She has the making of a great Jedi.”

“I can see…” Obi-Wan trailed off as the girl began another round, once more easily dispatching the youngling who she’d been paired with.

The younger students finished their classes and they watched as Anakin’s group came in, laughing and talking. Now almost seventeen, Anakin was the youngest of this advanced group, mostly made up of padawans who were twenty or older and nearing the end of the their training.

“His control hasn’t improved,” Obi-Wan muttered, watching Anakin sparring.

“It will,” Sarenna said quietly, resting a hand on Obi-Wan’s shoulder. Anakin chose that moment to look up and spot them. He grinned, waving enthusiastically, and another padawan took the opportunity to swipe his feet out from under him, dumping him on the mat.

“If he doesn’t, he’ll be in trouble,” Obi-Wan sighed as Sarenna chuckled.

* * *

It was late, the archives lit by only a few lights, and Sarenna yawned widely, ready to close her terminal and retired, when something caught her eye. She opened the image in the data text she was reading and then sat back, releasing a breath, her whole body shivering.

“The woman,” Sarenna said quietly, and next to her Obi-Wan looked up. 

“You found her?” he asked, surprised, leaning closer.

“No, but she looked like this,” Sarenna said, turning the screen toward him. On it was a picture of a grey skinned woman with short white hair.

“Dathomirian,” Obi-Wan nodded. “The Witches. They’re a race of matriarchal force sensitives. There have been a few who were strong enough to become Jedi. The Sith who killed Qui-Gon was a Zabrak, males raised on the far side of Dathomir, part of their cult but also separate.”

“Well,” Sarenna said, setting back. “I suppose we know that our Sith Lord has a particular preference for apprentices.”

“I wonder…” Obi-Wan said, turning back to his own screen and typing in a search. A few moment’s later he had a short list of three names, Dathomirian children who had been found by Jedi between ten and thirty years before. He opened each one, finding one was a full Knight, who worked in the healers wing, another who had been killed on a mission some years before, and one who was just a girl, despite the record being several years old.

“That’s her,” Sarenna said, looking over his shoulder at the young girl. “I’m sure of it.”

“Asajj Ventress,” Obi-Wan scrolled through the information. “Master Ky Nerac found her while he was stranded on Rattatak, and he took her as a learner. According to this it was some years before he was able to make contact with the Jedi Temple again, and when he did, he preferred to stay and help liberate the world from pirates. A few years later, he was killed, and…it appears she turned to the dark side. She eliminated the pirates out of revenge, and then ruled Rattatak herself. Five years ago she disappeared.”

“Well, we know that it was likely the Zabrak you killed on Naboo was the apprentice,” she said thoughtfully. “Maybe this Ventress is the new apprentice.”

“Perhaps…” Obi-Wan considered. “No matter what, we must be cautious. She is powerful, angry, and dangerous. She nearly killed you, and you are by no means weak.”

“But I’m not as skilled either, I couldn’t hope to compete against two sabres,” Sarenna sighed. “Still. That is something I mean to change, now that I can walk again.”

“Are you sure you’re ready?” Obi-Wan asked, laying a hand on her injured knee gently. He could feel how the force was still twisted around the injury, even though the last surgery was complete and she’d had several energetic healings done. 

“I have to be ready,” Sarenna said quietly. “For whatever’s coming.”

* * *

“Who is that?” Sarenna asked quietly, watching the man on the holo speak.

“His name is Dooku. He left the Jedi Order twenty years ago when he reclaimed his hereditary title as Count of Serreno,” Obi-Wan whispered. All around them Sarenna could feel the unease that came with the Count’s words, as he spoke of a movement to leave the Republic, something that would destabilise the entire galaxy if it were to happen.

“This doesn’t bode well,” Sarenna said, shaking her head. 

“No, I fear it doesn’t,” Obi-Wan nodded. “What do you feel?”

“Unease,” she said at once. “Like a cloud on the horizon. It reminds me of when the summer sandstorms came in, they were the worst and most dangerous storms of the year. For days before one it was like there was this darkness on the horizon, just waiting to swoop in and destroy everything. It feels like that now.”

“If systems begin to break from the Republic, it will mean far greater trouble than any of us could have anticipated,” he said quietly.

“I don’t understand,” Anakin muttered. “Why is this important?”

“It might not be,” Sarenna said. “But if it is…if systems begin to leave the Republic, the central governing body in the galaxy, how many systems will take it to mean the Republic has no more control? How many of them will abandon their laws, their justice systems? How many systems abolished slavery when they joined the Republic? If they leave…”

“Then everywhere could become like home,” Anakin said, fists clenched.

“We can do nothing but wait,” Obi-Wan said gently, laying a hand on Anakin’s shoulder to calm him. “We don’t know what the outcome of this broadcast will be, or how many systems, if any, will elect to leave the Republic.”

“Whatever the circumstances, I believe it may be wise to prepare for the worst,” said the Kel Dor Master Plo Koon from somewhere in front of them. Around them, other Jedi nodded.

Within three months, nearly three hundred systems had joined the newly formed Separatist Alliance, and the galaxy was one step closer to a full scale war.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> >:D Happy March.

_Jedi Temple_   
_(22 BBY)_

“Anakin? What is it?” Sarenna asked, watching him stand stiffly, staring out her window into the garden below.

“I’ve been…dreaming,” he said quietly, fingers twitching. 

“About what?” she asked, folding her robe and laying it over the back of the small sofa. She went into the kitchen to make tea, waiting.

“My mother,” Anakin said so softly she barely heard him, though she felt the anguish slip past his shields when he said it. 

“Tell me,” she said, walking over and laying a hand on his arm. She reached for him, for the connection they’d formed so long ago when they were both nothing but children, letting her support and love flow into him until he relaxed and turned to her with haunted eyes.

“I see her with the sand people, captured, beaten. I see them killing her. I’ve tried to tell Obi-Wan, but he says it will pass. It doesn’t just feel like another dream, Renna, it feels so real,” Anakin growled, frustrated.

Sarenna frowned, gazing at him, gazing through him, into the force. She swayed a little and he reached a hand up to steady her as her eyes lost focus.

“What do you see?” he asked hesitantly. They never much discussed some of the things Sarenna could do, the fact that she could see things through the force as clear as any of the strongest Jedi, clearer, on some occasions. There were things she could do that only Anakin knew about, and things Anakin could do that only she knew about, even to this day. 

“I don’t see anything,” she said and his face fell. “That doesn’t mean there is no danger. You’re strong, Anakin, and your mind is still so undisciplined.” 

Anakin snorted, turning away with a huff.

“Keeping your mind quiet and in order is not a bad thing, even for one who is not a Jedi,” she told him, her tone slightly scolding and he took a breath and nodded. 

“You think I can see the future?” he said. “Like you?”

“I think we both see the possibilities, but nothing is utterly set in stone. I think the force is trying to show you something, and I think you need to trust it.”

At that moment the door chimed and Obi-Wan entered, peering at them, his face calm but his energy somewhat unsteady.

“Anakin, we have an assignment. We’re needed immediately,” he said, looking back and forth between them. Anakin turned to Sarenna, his face filled with more fear and sorrow than she had seen in a long time.

“Go,” she said quietly. “I’ll meditate, and see if I can sense anything else about your mother.”

“Thank you,” he whispered, hugging her tightly before leaving them alone. 

“Obi-Wan?” Sarenna asked softly. Obi-Wan shifted, his fingers unconsciously tangled in the force, tugging it this way and that.

“I believe…it’s begun,” he said quietly and Sarenna took a breath. They had been worried for more than a year now, about the shift they could all feel coming. Every Jedi knew something was about to happen, but no one had been able to see clearly enough to know when or what.

“What’s happened?” she asked and Obi-Wan shook his head.

“I’m not sure if it’s part of something bigger, but there has been an assassination attempt on Senator Amidala, of Naboo. She had just arrived for an important vote, and her ship was destroyed on the landing platform. Fortunately her head of security had put a decoy in place, but sadly the woman and two of the pilots were killed.”

Sarenna remembered the girl from ten years before, back when she had been the elected Queen of Naboo, and on the run. She remembered meeting her on Tatooine, and had heard somewhere that when her terms as queen were up, she had been asked to serve in the senate.

“It can’t be a coincidence that she was targeted by the Trade Federation all those years ago, and now this.”

“She is vocally against the military creation act, which many see as a necessary move now that the Separatist Alliance is gaining strength,” Obi-Wan said. “Someone wanted her out of the way so that the bill would have a better chance of going through.

“And they’ve assigned you and Anakin to protect her?” Sarenna asked.

Obi-Wan nodded. “Sarenna, I feel there is more to this than meets the eye, both politically and personally. I’m concerned about Anakin seeing her again…he was…infatuated, as a child. I do not believe he has let his attachment to her go.”

Sarenna sighed, shaking her head. “I don’t think there’s much to be done about that, but I fear you’re right. I can feel the force shifting, as if it’s preparing for something…please, be careful, Obi-Wan, both of you be careful.”

“We will,” Obi-Wan promised, pressing a kiss to her forehead before he turned away, leaving Sarenna with her troubled thoughts.  


* * *

“You jumped out of a window?!” Sarenna nearly shouted late the next night, or what could be called early morning by most, turning Obi-Wan’s face to the light to examine the cut across his forehead.

“He jumped out of a speeder,” Obi-Wan said, somewhat petulantly as he dabbed at his lip.

“Hey! Window trumps speeder any day, Master,” Anakin grumbled, picking at a scratch on his arm.

“The both of you will be the death of me,” Sarenna sighed, reaching for a bottle of bacta gel. “Why didn’t you go to the healers?”

“We don’t have time,” Anakin muttered. “The Senator is guarded for the moment, and it’s unlikely there will be another attempt tonight,”

“And we have to report to the council in just a few minutes,” Obi-Wan finished.

“The sun is barely up,” Sarenna complained, dabbing bacta on the cut. 

“And we’re already late,” Obi-Wan muttered. “You must understand, I fear Healer Che’s wrath more than yours if I had woken her before dawn for a couple of scratches.”

Sarenna snorted, not sure if she was amused or insulted. 

“He doesn’t mean you’re not terrifying,” Anakin added with a grin and they all chuckled.

“Well, get moving then,” Sarenna said, bandaging the last cut and shooing them out of her room with a sigh. She wanted another hours sleep before what promised to be a long day started.

She got no more sleep, finding herself summoned to the council only an hour later, and by that afternoon she was accompanying Obi-Wan to see Anakin and the Senator off, back to Naboo on a refugee transport to disguise both her presence and the fact that she was leaving the capital. It had been deemed the best course of action to hide her, while Obi-Wan tracked down the bounty hunter and who hired him to have the senator assassinated.

“I do hope he doesn’t do anything foolish,” Obi-Wan said quietly as the two walked away, R2-D2 in tow.

“I’d be more concerned about her doing something, than him,” Captain Typho said and Sarenna and Obi-Wan glanced at one another. 

“I don’t like the sound of that,” Obi-Wan confessed, and Sarenna could only nod. 

* * *

When Sarenna’s communicator sounded three days later, she yawned, checking the chronometer with blurry eyes. It was the middle of the night on Coruscant, but when she accepted the holo call she found a nervous looking Anakin standing in the dawn light.

“Anakin? What’s wrong?” she asked, sitting up and pulling the small communicator closer to her face.

“The dreams are getting worse,” he said, his face distorted by the holo. “I know she’s in trouble and I can’t…”

“It’s all right, Anakin, I’ll go,” Sarenna said quietly and she could see his relief as his shoulders slumped.

“Will you?” he asked quietly

“Of course. You know Shmi is like family to me too,” Sarenna smiled. “I’ll leave as soon as I can. Stay safe Anakin, remember you’re there to protect the senator, not for time off.”

“I will,” Anakin nodded with a soft smile.  


* * *

It took a day to arrange a ship, and she had to go to one of the civilian yards to buy something, since there hadn’t been a single ship in the temple that was free for use. Jedi were being sent on diplomatic envoys in droves and the temple seemed almost empty as the political situation in the senate continued to worsen.

When she returned to the temple late in the evening, after visiting the bar she still owned a large percentage of, and purchasing her ship, she could practically smell the turmoil rolling off Obi-Wan as soon as she stepped inside. She followed her senses until she was standing outside one of the class rooms, where Obi-Wan was speaking to Master Yoda and a group of younglings, and she smiled, leaning against the doorframe.

Obi-Wan nodding to Yoda as he turned to leave and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw Sarenna watching him with a soft smile.

“Hello,” he said, walking up to her and reaching for her hands, squeezing them lightly. She smiled wider, nodding to Master Yoda as they turned and walked away.

“What’s wrong?” Obi-Wan asked and Sarenna looked at him. He seemed calmer, more focused, then he had a few days before.

“Nothing,” she said quietly.

“I don’t believe that,” Obi-Wan said. “Your energy is taught, like a string about to snap, and I can barely feel you in the force. Please, tell me,” he said. 

She was silent as they walked through the temple to her quarters.

“It’s getting worse,” Sarenna said quietly when the door had slid shut behind them. “The force is…uneasy.”

“I’ve felt it shifting,” Obi-Wan nodded with a sigh. “Now that Anakin has reached Naboo with Senator Amidala, we hope she will be safe there, and I must go and see if I can find out where this leads.”

They settled on the couch as he showed her the dart taken from the bounty hunter and explained what Dex had told him about Kamino, and the mysterious disappearance of the data from the archives.

“You’re going out there?” she asked when he finished explaining the youngling’s theory that the plant was still there.

“We have to know what’s going on,” he nodded. “And you?”

“I’m going home, to Tatooine, to check on Anakin’s mother,” Sarenna said with a heavy sigh. “You may not put much stock in his dreams, Obi-Wan, but I do, and they’re getting worse. He commed me early this morning, terrified.”

“Sarenna, that’s not what I meant,” Obi-Wan said quietly, knowing he’d been somewhat dismissive of Anakin’s dreams. “But death is natural and if it is her time…”

“No one deserves to die like that. She’s my family too, she and Anakin were the only family I ever had. I’m no Jedi, you can’t keep me here, you can’t have the council keep me here,” she said, her voice hard.

“Of course not, and I wouldn’t try but-”

“I know you think he’s undisciplined and that we shouldn’t treat him like he’s anything special, but he is. It may not be this Chosen One prophecy but there is something different about him, about the way the force speaks to him.”

“The same could be said of you,” Obi-Wan said quietly, gazing thoughtfully at her. “You’re always been more similar than I could understand, given you’re not related. Very well, just please be careful.”

“Of course,” she said softly, reaching a hand up to brush through his long hair. She liked it like this, just a bit too long and falling in his eyes.

Obi-Wan’s eyes drifted shut as he tilted his cheek into her palm, smiling as his hand came up to cover hers.

“I feel suddenly like I might not see you again,” she said softly and Obi-Wan pulled her close, embracing her tightly as he buried his face in her hair. He didn’t have anything to say, no words of comfort. He felt it too.

“It’s late,” she whispered. Outside the temple the sun had sunk below the horizon and the lights of the never ending city kept the darkness at bay. “Come to bed?”

Obi-Wan nodded, pulling back and kissing her softly before he stood and removed his boots, leaving them neatly by the door, while she left her own by the couch, her robe thrown over the back. His own robe he hung by the door before he returned to the couch and took her hand, pulling her up and against him, arms wrapping around her as they kissed softly, taking slow steps toward the bedroom. 

In no rush, Obi-Wan carefully untied each of her tunics and pushed the cloth down her shoulders, reaching for the ties of her trousers as she pushed his shirts open, her hands roaming his skin and causing a shudder to race through him. His fingers caught under her chin as he tilted her face up just enough to kiss her deeply, mouths opening and tongues sliding against one another in a slow burn of heat and desire. Her force presence flickered and Obi-Wan drew back, gazing at her.

“Let me see you,” he said softly, one thumb brushing over the scar below her eye. 

Sarenna gazed at him for a long moment, unsure. 

“Please. I promise you won’t scare me,” Obi-Wan whispered softly and Sarenna sighed, searching his eyes and his feelings, wide open to her. All she could feel was calm, caring, and worry. Finally, she nodded.

“All right,” she whispered, pulling him closer as she took a step back and lay on the bed.

He shed his shirts and settled carefully against her, their skin touching in more places than it didn’t, arousal forgotten as she slowly allowed him inside her shields. One at a time, she opened them only so far that his presence was welcomed inside, before closing the seal again tightly, keeping the rest of the temple, the rest of the galaxy out. 

He was inside her now, more so than he had ever been. This went beyond any physical connection, any fleeting moment of joining shared though mutual pleasure. This was his soul touching hers, feeling the light that burned so brightly he thought he might go blind. He was seeing the truth of what Qui-Gon had barely glimpsed years before.

“I have never seen anything like you,” he whispered against her ear. He didn’t need his eyes, or any of his physical senses anymore. It was like his body was gone, hidden on the other side of the walls she kept so tightly bound around her. He felt her hand brush through his hair as if a ghost touched him.

“Never?” she asked softly, her body shifting under his. Obi-Wan breathed in, the brush of their skin only a whisper of a feeling. 

“You are beyond imagination,” he said quietly, aware and yet not of his physical hand brushing along her cheek, tucking her hair behind her ear. He wasn’t even sure he still spoke with his voice. 

“I don’t know what I am,” Sarenna whispered. “It’s always been like this. I learned to hide it early, I knew…I knew something, there was someone out there who would only want to use me for their own purposes.”

“Sith,” Obi-Wan said softly, and Sarenna nodded. 

They lay like that, half clothed and their force presences so tangled together it was hard to know where one ended and the other began. At last, Obi-Wan took a breath, drawing himself back in, reeling in the parts of himself that had become lost in her, until they slowly pulled apart. He pressed softly against her shields, and they gave way just enough to allow him to pass back into himself.

“Thank you,” he whispered against the corner of her mouth just before he sunk back into his own body and her shields closed over the light inside her. When he blinked his eyes open again there was nothing strange, nothing more about her force presence. She was once again almost completely hidden from him.

“You’re not running,” Sarenna said softly, a tentative smile on her lips.

“Oh, my love,” Obi-Wan said on a shaky breath, bringing a hand up to cup her face with trembling fingers. “I could never run from you.”

“I though you would be scared,” Sarenna said, smile finally reaching her eyes. 

“Never,” Obi-Wan swore, pressing forward and catching her mouth in a deep kiss, arousal sparking between them again, and with deft hands, he rid them of the rest of their clothes, bringing her close as their bodies joined and she cried out beneath him. 

“I love you,” he whispered against her hair, again and again as he brought her to the edge of pleasure and over, falling into the abyss with her shortly after. 


	13. Chapter 13

_Tatooine_

The heat was the same as it had ever been. In seven years nothing had changed, and the sand and suns still sang quietly as Sarenna landed her ship just outside Mos Espa. Closing her eyes she took a deep breath, before steeling herself to step out of her ship and onto the sand. It hummed, like it always had, in a familiar, yet disconcerting way. Quickly, not wanting to linger any longer than necessary, Sarenna made her way to her old house, only to find it empty when she keyed in the codes. There was a light dusting of sand along the floor, and cobwebs from desert crawlers in the corners, but no other signs of life. Confused, she walked out again, glancing up and down the street, before crossing to an old lady who had lived in that same house as long as Sarenna had been alive. When she got close, the woman looked up and grinned a toothless grin.

“Sarenna? I never thought I’d see you around here!” she said, her arms open wide, and Sarenna moved forward to hug her, glad she’d taken her clothes that resembled what she had worn when she lived her on Tatooine, not those that resembled Jedi garb.

“Ima, I’m looking for Shmi. Isn’t she here?” Sarenna asked, gesturing at the empty house across the narrow street.

“She married a moisture farmer a few years ago,” Ima said with a smile. “Moved out to his farm not long after. She’s been back a few times, but it’s been a long time since she lived here.”

“Do you know where they live?” Sarenna asked.

“It’s a long way from here,” Ima shook her head. “Out near the dune sea, the other side of Mos Eisley.”

“Thank you,” Sarenna said with a smile, carefully passing Ima a pouch full of local money.

“Oh dear, you don’t need to-” she started but Sarenna shook her head. 

“Please, it’s the only thing I can do to help, and you’ve helped me,” she said with a smile. Ima shook her head and picked up a rare fruit from her basket, pressing into Sarenna’s hand.

“It’s good to see you,” she said softly and Sarenna nodded, taking the fruit and wandering along the street, looking for any of the old trouble makers.

Mos Espa looked the same as ever, and she spent a few hours listening at corners and following some old marks before she returned to her ship, nothing of interest learned. She headed to Mos Eisley and got the name of the farmer Shmi had married and the location of the farm. Fortunately she only needed to bribe, not threaten, which was good because since she didn’t want to draw too much attention to herself. Another short trip brought her to a moisture farm, all but the main dome sunk into the sand to combat the heat. She approached quickly, sensing something was happening, and when she entered the dwelling, she paused.

“Hello,” Sarenna said, looking around at the large group of men clustered in the courtyard, all of them holding some type of weapon, mostly pikes or rough spears, but a few had blasters that might actually fire. “I’m looking for Shmi Skywalker.”

One man pushed his way through the crowd to her, looking her up and down. 

“I’m Cleig Lars,” he said, holding out a hand. “Shmi is my wife. She was taken by Tuskan Raiders a week ago, when she went out to pick fruit one morning.”

Sarenna frowned. “And you’re going after her?”

“What else would we do?” Cleig demanded. “She’s my wife, and even if I didn’t love her, which I do, I wouldn’t be leaving her to the mercy of those monsters.”

“You’re farmers, you don’t stand a chance,” she told them bluntly. “I’ll go.”

“And what are you going to achieve?” one of the others spoke up, clearly frustrated and angry.

Sarenna sighed, pulling her sabre from its pouch, igniting the green blade.

“Jedi,” another man said, backing away slightly.

“I think I might have a better chance of finding her than you,” Sarenna said quietly, tucking her sabre away, not correcting them that she wasn’t entirely a Jedi. They didn’t need to know that small detail.

“What business is it of yours?” the first man said, waving his makeshift spear.

“You’re Sarenna Bakashi, aren’t you?” Cleig said after a moment. “Shmi told me about you, said you were as close to her as a daughter. You’re a Jedi, like her son?”

“Anakin dreamt she’d been captured,” Sarenna told them. “He would have come, but he’s on an assignment that’s vital to the safety of the Republic, so I came to see if there was anything behind his dreams. It seems there was.”

“There are too many of them,” Cleig said. “We should go with you.”

“I can pass unseen, and I can find her without needing to search their entire village,” Sarenna shook her head. “There is far less risk to me, to you, to her, and to them, if I go alone.”

“Who cares about them?” one man shouted. “They’re vicious monsters!”

“And if she is alive then they will remain alive,” Sarenna said quietly, steel in her voice. “It is not the Jedi way to kill creatures needlessly, nor is it their way to seek revenge.”

This was followed by a lot of loud grumbling but no one tried to stop her as she returned to her speeder and followed Cleig’s directions toward the Tuskan village where Shmi had most likely been taken. By the time she arrived it was dark, and she stowed the speeder behind a stack of rocks a ways from the village before creeping forward quietly in the dark, her shields lower than they had been in years as she stretched out all her senses. 

She could feel Shmi, wounded, but not gravely so, in one of the houses. Carefully, quietly, she snuck into the camp, distracting the dogs with a flick of the force, and quickly cut a hole in the side of the dome. There was one Tuskan inside, but she was able to knock him out with a swift blow, and all the damage it would do was a nasty headache. Part of her wanted their blood, but a larger part wanted to get Shmi and get away, before she was forced to do something violent.

“C’mon, let’s get out of here,” she muttered, shaking Shmi carefully until the other woman woke up, glancing around in fear before her eyes rested on the other.

“Renna?” she gasped and Sarenna hushed her, cutting the leather binding her wrists and helping her out of the small structure and back to the speeder.

“Are you hurt?” she asked when she had Shmi settled. “Can you make it back to the farm?”

“I’m fine, a little bruised is all,” Shmi said, her hands trembling. “I didn’t think anyone was coming for me.”

“They were all coming for you, they would have gotten slaughtered if I hadn’t come when I did,” Sarenna muttered, walking the speeder away from the village before she started it and jumped on. 

“How did you know?” Shmi asked as they shot across the desert. 

“Anakin,” Sarenna shouted over the wind and behind her, Shmi smiled.

They made it back to the Lars farm late that night and the reunion was full of happiness and relief, before Sarenna pulled Shmi aside to speak with her.

“Please don’t do that again,” Sarenna said quietly and Shmi sighed. “You can’t risk your life like that for fruit.”

“You picked fruit every day as a small child,” Shmi reminded her and Sarenna shook her head.

“I have the force. Animals and creatures are less inclined to come near someone strong with the force. You have no protection. And it would destroy Anakin if anything ever happened, you know that,” she said quietly.

“I refuse to live my life in fear any longer,” Shmi said. “But…I will be more careful.”

“Thank you,” Sarenna said, hugging her tightly.

They had a very late dinner, and the conversation was idle and pleasant, before they all slept. Most of the men that had been there when Sarenna had first arrived had gone home, and Sarenna met Owen, Cleig’s son who was around Anakin’s age. He was a nice boy, clearly besotted with the girl Beru that was staying with them. They were getting married, as soon as they sold off the next harvest and had money to pay for the wedding. 

Early the next morning, Sarenna woke before dawn, rubbing her ears and tugging her poncho on as she left the house, striding out onto the sand in time to see the first of the twin suns break the horizon. The wind whistled and something tugged on her, nearly dragging her back a step. She turned slowly, eyes sweeping the horizon, but she saw nothing.

_Sarenna._

Glancing around, Sarenna spread out with her senses, searching.

_Sarenna. Speak to me._

“Who are you?” she called.

_Come._

Frowning, Sarenna glanced back at the farm before following the tugging to her speeder and east, out into the dunes. She could sense nothing out of the ordinary, but the strange resonance the desert had always held was stronger as she approached a cliff face that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

“Who are you?” she called as she cut the speeder’s engines and left it beside a rock.

_I have been watching you for many years, child. I see all, I know all._

“What do you want with me?” she asked, looking around, trying to find anything that explained the presence she felt.

_You seek balance, but you will not find it._

“I don’t understand.”

There was a long silence and she realised she wasn’t hearing the voice with her ears, but inside her mind.

_One day. You will._

Then there was nothing. The wind quieted and for the first time, Sarenna could barely hear the humming in the sand. She turned and looked across the whole horizon, and when she came back to where she began, the cliffs were gone, replaced by only open desert. Shaking her head she turned away, mounting the speeder and heading back. The return journey seemed to take hours with the hot suns pounding down on her and by the time she reached the farm she was exhausted. She dismounted the speeder and turned to the house, freezing as her mind caught up to her eyes.

Standing in the doorway was Anakin Skywalker.


End file.
